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Samantha Morton has said that being fired from Spike Jonze's Oscar-winning movie Her and replaced with Scarlett Johansson still stings over a decade on.
The British actress, 49, was originally the voice of Samantha, the AI operating system that Joaquin Phoenix's Theodore Twombly falls in love with in Jonze's 2013 movie.
After recording her vocals, Samantha was recast in post-production, with US actress Scarlett, 41, drafted in to rerecord the role. The popular movie went on to receive five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture.
Samantha discussed the fallout in a recent podcast interview, admitting that she still thinks 'the work that we did was really special'.
Speaking to Josh Horowitz on his Happy Sad Confused podcast, the Nottingham-born actress caveated her words by explaining: '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.'
Samantha Morton has said that being fired from Spike Jonze's Oscar-winning movie Her and replaced with Scarlett Johnsson still stings over a decade on
After recording her vocals, Samantha was recast in post-production, with US actress Scarlett drafted in to rerecord the role (Scarlett pictured with director Spike at the 2013 Her premiere)
'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,' the 49-year-old continued.
'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,' she explained.
Samantha went on to say that her replacement Scarlett '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.'
Samantha has worked with some big name Hollywood stars and directors over her thirty year career, and in her most recent role she was directed by Christopher Nolan.
Her performance as Circe, the goddess of Aeaea, in The Odyssey has been hailed as a masterpiece by critics and fans alike and Nolan himself has admitted he was floored by Samantha on set.
The actress received a standing ovation from the cast and crew with a producer revealing of Nolan's reaction 'that's something we hadn't seen since Heath Ledger on The Dark Knight'.
The late Ledger would go on to receive a posthumous Oscar for his role in 2008’s The Dark Knight.
Samantha has worked with some big name Hollywood stars and directors over her thirty year career, and in her most recent role she was directed by Christopher Nolan in The Odyssey
And now there's Oscar buzz around Samantha. The star has two Academy Award nominations to her name for her roles in 1999's Sweet and Lowdown and 2002's In America but she could secure her first win with her 10-minute The Odyssey performance.
The reviews for The Odyssey are almost universal in their soaring praise and five star ratings.
The Daily Mail's Brian Viner declared that 'Nolan's film is a glorious cinematic experience, a triumph both of story-telling and movie-making.'
Viner added 'I rarely say this of movies nearly three hours long – one viewing simply isn't enough.'
Despite the rave reviews, Samantha revealed she hasn't worked in a year since filming the movie – a gap she believes is due to her age.
'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,' she said on the Happy, Sad, Confused podcast.
'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.'
English (US) ·