One of the best parts about The Odyssey’s success and discourse around the film is that people are discovering or rediscovering Samantha Morton. Morton plays Circe in the film and she’s already garnered a lot of Oscar buzz. She already has two Oscar nominations, but both came over two decades ago. Well, it looks like Morton’s scene-stealing turn in the Odyssey has not led to other roles. She told Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast that she hasn’t booked a job since working with Christopher Nolan, which is insane. She also talked about being recast in Spike Jonze’s Her. Some quotes:

She hasn’t worked in a year: “I haven’t worked for a year since making The Odyssey, you know. And I’ve got really good agents and a manager, but at the end of the day, I’m 49. While I do believe I’m a good actor, there are other good actors out there. Do you know what I mean? So, the politics of the industry has changed massively.”

Being replaced by Scarlett Johansson on Spike Jonze’s Her. Morton was originally the voice of Samantha, the AI operating system that Joaquin Phoenix’s Theodore Twombly falls in love with. However, Samantha was recast in post-production, with Johansson taking over the role. The film went on to receive five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, and won for Best Original Screenplay. “I have to say that it’s every director’s prerogative in regard to the final cut of the film. For any job, you’re never guaranteed to be in it in the end. But with that, I was surprised. A little sad would be an understatement. The time I had on set with Joaquin [Phoenix], working with Spike on the script and finding Samantha, and all the work that we did was really special. We did some mad stuff. They designed and built a booth for me to record all my sound. I would be in this black, padded phone box, or I’d be in the trunk of a car. I think my version of Samantha was very different. She’s English. Scarlett Johansson has a beautiful voice; she’s incredibly evocative. I got it, but I was sad. It does hurt when you’re fired from something. What I would have wished for was another chance in a booth to do an American accent. But Scarlett Johansson — I mean, come on.”

[From HuffPo & The Independent]

I totally forgot about the Her issue, and the fact that Morton was replaced in POST-production. As in, Morton filmed everything – or rather, voiced the entire role – and then Scarlett came in as a replacement after principal filming was over. That’s insane. Samantha has every right to still be upset about that. As for Samantha not booking any jobs… that’s also bonkers, because she’s easily one of the best actresses of her generation, and it’s been like that for decades. Yes, the industry politics have changed a lot in that time, but it also just goes to a real lack of imagination among directors and casting directors. They’d rather cycle through the same five actresses than actually cast someone like Morton.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.