Samuel Koch
Samuel Koch, actor, author, speaker, born in 1987, started as a gymnast at the age of 6 and competed in countless competitions for 17 years. He studied acting at the University of Music, Drama and Media in Hanover. He has been a quadriplegic since an accident in 2010, but completed his studies with a degree in July 2014. Samuel Koch had a series role in “Sturm der Liebe” and a supporting role in the feature film “Honig im Kopf”. He joined the ensemble at Staatstheater Darmstadt in September 2014 and played leading roles in “Faust” and “Prinz von Homburg”, for which he was nominated as the best young German actor by Theater heute magazine. This was followed by his first roles in feature films and television productions. Koch made his debut in a leading role in the Grimme Award-nominated film “Draussen in meinem Kopf” in 2018. Since October 2018, he has been a member of the ensemble at the Nationaltheater Mannheim as Judas and with “Wounds are forever” (Mühlheimer Dramatikpreis 2022) on stage. Since 2021 he has been working independently as a speaker, actor (“Sachertorte”, prime video, 2022) and author.
His book “Two Lives” became a “Der Spiegel” bestseller and was awarded the “Golden Compass” media prize in 2012. In autumn 2015, his second book, “Rolle vorwärts” (Roll Forward), was published with the subtitle “Life goes on further than you think”. Since January 2019, his work “Stehaufmensch!” (Get Back Up!) has been inspiring people to discover their own “resilience”. In the book accompanying the live show of the same name, “Schwerelos” (Weightless), he describes his experiences of how life becomes easier.
He supports, among others, the German Spinal Cord Injury Foundation and “wings for life”, the international foundation for spinal cord research. He regularly gives readings and lectures. The Samuel Koch und Freunde e.V. has been active since summer 2019.
He has been a member of the ensemble at the Münchner Kammerspiele since the 2024–25 season.
