Before Samantha Morton was a two-time Oscar nominee, she had lived with 12 foster families by the age of seven. Morton, who stars in The Odyssey, has recalled how a teacher introduced her to drama and a social worker helped her secure another audition after a foster home move prevented her from receiving a callback letter.
In an interview published on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, the 49-year-old actress named a teacher, Mr Thompson, as the person who encouraged her to perform at school in Nottingham. At the time, she did not even know what drama involved.
Morton subsequently auditioned for a local youth drama group, but a letter inviting her back never reached her after another placement change. The following year, a social worker helped her secure another audition. She got in, beginning a path that would lead to major film roles and two Academy Award nominations.
How Did Samantha Morton Get Into Acting?
Mr Thompson first suggested drama after getting to know Morton at school. 'You should do drama,' she recalled him saying, before he gave pupils script pages and encouraged them to put on a play. Morton enjoyed the experience enough to audition for a local group, but her changing address nearly closed that door.
'The letter that they sent didn't get to me because I moved foster families,' she explained. Although the group had invited her back, Morton never knew about the callback. A social worker stepped in the following year to organise a fresh audition, and Morton was accepted into the programme.
She described the opportunity as having 'saved me.' It was an early introduction to performing that depended on practical help from adults who recognised her interest. Morton later trained at Nottingham's Television Workshop, a formative part of her early career.
In a separate interview, Samantha Morton opens up about her childhood in foster care and how acting saved her life.
The Childhood Behind 'The Unloved'
Morton has previously discussed growing up in care and experiencing homelessness as a teenager. She has also spoken about the adults who supported her, alongside her criticism of failures within the care system. Those experiences eventually informed The Unloved, her 2009 television film about a girl living in residential care.
Morton directed the semi-autobiographical drama, developed from her original material with screenwriter Tony Grisoni. The film won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Single Drama in 2010. By then, she had earned Academy Award nominations for Sweet and Lowdown in 2000 and In America in 2004. Her other screen credits include Minority Report, The Walking Dead and The Serpent Queen.
When she received the BAFTA Fellowship in 2024, Morton again described the impact of seeing people from backgrounds like hers on screen. 'Film changed my life. It transformed me,' she said, recalling watching Ken Loach's Kes at school. The award recognised her contribution to film and television across a career that began with a teacher's suggestion.
From 'The Unloved' to 'The Odyssey'
Morton is now receiving renewed attention for her portrayal of Circe in Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, alongside Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway and Robert Pattinson. Her appearance in the 2026 film has brought fresh visibility to a performer whose career spans more than three decades. She has said Nolan wanted her for the part from the beginning.
The actor also discussed how opportunities for women can narrow as they get older, even as their experience grows. She said that despite winning a BAFTA for The Unloved, she has struggled to get a second film made as a director. Her comments connected her latest Hollywood role to questions of who gets a chance to work behind the camera.
For Morton, those chances began far from a film set. One teacher persuaded her to try drama, and one social worker helped her return after a letter went missing. Neither could have known where the next audition would take her.
