Find out how and where to watch "I Am Sam" online on Netflix, Prime Video, and Hotstar today – including 4K and free options. I Am Sam is a 2001 American drama film directed by Jessie Nelson and starring Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Dakota Fanning. The story follows the life of Sam Dawson (Sean Penn), a single father with developmentally challenged functioning who is raising his daughter, Lucy (Dakota Fanning). Sam Dawson has the mental capacity of a 7-year-old and works at a Starbucks. He has a daughter with a homeless woman; she abandons them as soon as they leave... Find out how and where to watch "I Am Sam" online on Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+ today – including 4K and free options.