Samantha Morton

Samantha Morton
Biography

Birth name             Samantha Jane Morton
Birth date               May 13, 1977
Birth place              Nottingham, England
Height                    5' 3" (1.60 m) Occupation            Actress/Director
Years active           1991 – present
Partner                   Harry Holm

Personal Life and Career
Samantha Jane Morton  is an English actress and film director. Morton has twice been nominated for an Academy Award, twice for a BAFTA Award, twice for a Golden Globe and once each for an Emmy Award and SAG Award. Morton's acting has been recognised by several organizations, including the Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards, the Chicago Film Critics Association Award, the Evening Standard British Film Awards, the London Critics Circle and the Toronto Film Critics Association.

She made her film debut in This Is the Sea (1997). She received worldwide attention and an Academy Award nomination for her role in Woody Allen's Sweet and Lowdown (1999). She appeared in Minority Report (2002) and In America (2003), for which received her second Academy Award nomination. She starred in the television film Longford (2007), she received an Emmy Award nomination and won a Golden Globe for her portrayal of Moors Murderer Myra Hindley. She appeared in the 2009 drama The Messenger.

Morton took up acting as a child. She joined the Central Junior Television Workshop when she was 13 and was soon being offered small-screen roles. In 1991, she was cast as Clare Anderson in the first series of Lucy Gannon's Soldier Soldier and also made a guest appearance, as Mandy, in an episode of Boon — both were Central TV productions.

Moving to London at 16, Morton applied to numerous drama schools, including RADA, without success. As a result, she received no further formal acting training.  She made her stage debut at the Royal Court Theatre,  and continued her television career with a guest appearance on Peak Practice and in an episode of Cracker called "The Big Crunch".

A controversial role in the second series of Kay Mellor's successful Band of Gold (1995) resulted in a lot of tabloid interest, some of which focused on Morton's upbringing and personal life.[citation needed] Further television roles followed, including parts in period dramas including Emma, Jane Eyre and The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling. The well-received Under the Skin (1997) continued to raise her profile and impressed Woody Allen enough for him to cast her in Sweet and Lowdown (1999). Morton gave an acclaimed performance and received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2000.  In 2002, Morton won the British Independent Film Award for Best Actress for her work in Morvern Callar, followed by a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress for In America in 2004.

Morton has also appeared in a number of music videos. She worked with director Chris Cunningham for English garage rock band The Horrors' debut video, "Sheena Is a Parasite"; and played a mermaid opposite Larry Mullen in the Anton Corbijn-directed promotional video for U2's "Electrical Storm". She also provided the voice of Ruby for the Canadian animated series Max and Ruby from 2001 to 2003.

Morton played the Moors Murderess Myra Hindley in a television film Longford (2006). Set between 1967 and 1997, the film depicts the relationship between the infamous child killer and Lord Longford, the politician who spent years campaigning (ultimately unsuccessfully) for her release. Morton was severely criticised by the relatives of the children who were killed by Hindley and Ian Brady but she insisted, "It is my duty as a performer to raise issues...we're afraid to look at".  Morton received a 2007 Emmy nomination and won a Golden Globe, both for Best Supporting Actress. A BAFTA Best Supporting Actress nomination also followed for her role in Control (2007), again directed by Anton Corbijn. She plays Deborah Curtis, wife of musician Ian Curtis, whose biography Touching From a Distance formed the basis of the film.

In 2008, she was cast as Hazel in the American drama Synecdoche, New York, also starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener and Michelle Williams. The film was well received by film critics and the individual performances of the actors were praised. Synecdoche, New York opened at the Cannes Film Festival on 23 May, 2008.

Her directorial debut, the semi-autobiographical Channel 4 drama The Unloved, written in collaboration with Tony Grisoni, was first broadcast on 17 May 2009.  The film was premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2009. Morton won a BAFTA for her direction in 2010.

In 2012, Morton will co-star in Cosmopolis, directed by David Cronenberg.
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