Samantha Akkineni & Sudeep Movies Together List — 3 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-06-04 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Samantha Akkineni and Sudeep appeared together in 3 Tamil films. Their highest-rated collaboration was Makkhi (2012 — 8.1/10). Films span Naan Ee (2012) through Makkhi (2012).
The Samantha Akkineni & Sudeep partnership
2012 was their peak — 3 films in twelve months. From Naan Ee (2012) to Makkhi (2012). Makkhi is the one most viewers reach for.
It started with Naan Ee (2012).
The shape of the work
Samantha Akkineni acted in every film; Sudeep acted in all of them.
Partnership facts
- Samantha was actually the first choice for the female lead in Naan Ee, but Sudeep wasn't initially on board. Director S.S. Rajamouli had to convince Sudeep to take the villain role by showing him the full script — Sudeep signed on only after hearing the climax twist.
- In Naan Ee, Sudeep's towering physicality and booming voice forced Samantha to play her scenes with a nervous, flinching energy — she later said she didn't have to act scared because his presence genuinely intimidated her on set.
- The success of their pairing in Naan Ee and Eega directly led to the Telugu remake of the same film — Makkhi — which released in the same year. That remake became a cult hit in Telugu and is still referenced as one of the best dubbed Tamil-to-Telugu crossovers.
- Despite playing enemies on screen, Samantha and Sudeep became close friends during the shoot. Sudeep once gifted Samantha a custom-made necklace with a fly pendant — a nod to the film's plot — and she wore it to the audio launch.
- Samantha said in a 2012 interview: 'Sudeep sir is the only co-star who made me forget my lines because I was so scared of his eyes. He would laugh and say, “Good, that’s exactly what I need from you.”'
3 films across 1 decade
- Makkhi
- Eega
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
3 films across 0 years represents focused partnership.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 3 languages, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
After Makkhi, Samantha Akkineni kept going for 41 more films; Sudeep stepped back.
Before Naan Ee, Samantha Akkineni had starred in 6 films, including Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa (2010) and Ye Maaya Chesave (2010).
After Makkhi, Samantha Akkineni went on to appear in 41 more films, including 10 Enradhukulla (2015) and Super Deluxe (2019).
Before Naan Ee, Sudeep had starred in 8 films, including Rakta Charitra - I (2010) and Rakta Charitra - I (2010).
After Makkhi, Sudeep went on to appear in 8 more films, including Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy (2019) and Kabzaa (2023).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Samantha Akkineni & Sudeep's professional partnership
