Walking Dead star Samantha Morton is the talk of Hollywood and the world after her masterful performance as Circe in Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey.
It's not just critics and audiences who have praised Morton for her performance. Nolan had, perhaps, the highest praise for Morton when he revealed that she was part of something on one of his sets that had not happened since Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight.
In an interview with The LA Times, Nolan revealed that producer Emma Thomas, who also happens to be Nolan's wife, noticed that Morton received a round of applause from the entire crew after a take.
"After one of her takes, the crew gave her a great round of applause. I was talking with Emma afterwards and she remembered that the last time that had happened was with Heath Ledger on The Dark Knight.”
It's one thing to be recognized by audiences and critics. Morton is probably going to be nominated for a bunch of awards, and she'll likely be the favorite heading into awards seasons for her supporting role in The Odyssey. I have to imagine, though, that this kind of praise might mean even more than all of that.
What I'm trying to say is that it's much harder to impress a film crew to the point that the crew stops what they're doing after a take to applaud a performer. The fact that it hasn't happened on one of Nolan's sets since Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight is even more impressive. Ledger's performance as the Joker is one of the most incredible performances in modern film history. It's an all-time performance, and I think it's safe to say Morton turned in one as well in The Odyssey.
Morton was asked about the scene on The Today Show, and she explained what it felt like to be part of that moment.
"There's a scene that I do that people cannot believe is not CGI," Morton said. "So obviously, it was lovely that they were clapping Circe, but there was also this sense that certainly the special effects and everything that we did came together. To me, I'll never forget it, and it was a beautiful moment in cinema, you know."
The Walking Dead fans should not be surprised Morton is getting this kind of praise
While this might come as a surprise to the general public, I know this isn't a surprise to fans of The Walking Dead. Morton starred as Alpha in the ninth and tenth seasons of The Walking Dead. She was such a presence every time she was on screen.
It was always clear that Morton was one of the most talented performers in The Walking Dead. The depth she was able to bring to a rather minor character in the series proved that she could probably act circles around this cast.
And I don't mean that in a mean way, of course. I don't always like comparing actors because there's so much that goes into every role, and the writing is a huge part of an actor being deemed successful or unsuccessful.
Still, you could just tell Morton was so good at what she was doing in every scene. There were only a few Walking Dead stars I felt that with over the years. Steven Yeun is another one. Colman Domingo, who starred in Fear the Walking Dead, is another. These performers can just get to another level and elevate basically any material because you just know that they're going to bring it.
You can watch Morton and three more Walking Dead stars in The Odyssey right now.
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