Sams made a notable appearance as 'Lionel,' Whitney Houston's would-be suitor in the box-office hit Waiting to Exhale. He recently had a co-starring role in the cable movie "Hope," directed by Goldie Hawn, and will be on view this fall in the new NBC series "Sleepwalkers."

Sams played the lead in the feature film Fly By Night, which won an award at the Sundance Film Festival. He also appeared in the television series "Medicine Ball" and "Courthouse."