Samantha Morton life and biography

Samantha Jane Morton is an English actress and film director. She began her performing career with guest roles in television shows such as Soldier Soldier and Boon before making her film debut in the 1997 drama film This Is the Sea, playing the character of Hazel Stokes.
After a string of roles in low-budget and television films, she landed the role of Hattie in 1999's Sweet and Lowdown, for which she received the attention from Hollywood, the critical acclaim and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

She subsequently starred in 2002's Minority Report and Morvern Callar. She received her second Academy Award nomination for her performance as the young Irish mother coping with life in New York City, Sarah, in 2003's In America. Morton starred in 2004's Enduring Love and The Libertine and 2005's Lassie. She won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Television Movie for her role as Myra Hindley in 2006's Longford.
She appeared in the 2007 biographical films Control, Elizabeth: The Golden Age and Mister Lonely. She then starred in 2008's Synecdoche, New York. Morton appeared in the 2009 critically acclaimed The Messenger. She made her directorial debut in the English television film The Unloved.

Sam 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 first two 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.
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.

She 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.

She 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 praise 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.


Sam has two daughters: Esme (born 5 February 2000 in London), with actor Charlie Creed-Miles; and Edie (born 4 January 2008 in London), with filmmaker Harry Holm.Morton is engaged to Harry Holm, the son of actor Ian Holm.

Whilst attending a fundraiser for the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) in January 2009, she vowed never to work for the BBC again after their refusal to broadcast an emergency charity appeal for the victims of Israel's attack on Gaza on 27 December 2008. She was later joined by Tam Dean Burn, Pauline Goldmsith, Peter Mullan and Alison Peebles who also threatened to boycott the Corporation.

March 2009 saw Morton return to her home town to show her support for its children's homes and protest against the threatened closure, by Nottingham City Council, of one of the four establishments with 24 social-care staff facing redundancy.She also fronted a TV advertising recruitment campaign for social workers in the UK in 2009.
On 20 July 2011, Morton received an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters (DLitt) from Nottingham Trent University in recognition of her internationally successful acting career.

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