AMC’s The Walking Dead has been a regular topic of conversation for a while, with spinoff series beginning, a new season being delayed, and Rick Grimes’ movie making progress. Ahead of the drama's return for additional Season 10 episodes, actress Samantha Morton, who played Alpha in the ninth and tenth seasons of The Walking Dead, revealed she has contracted COVID-19.
Samantha Morton took to her Twitter to announce that even though she contracted COVID, she is okay, by her own account. Morton also took this opportunity to thank the healthcare workers. In her own words:
Thank you to all the A and E staff at the Conquest who helped me tonight. I’m so grateful for our NHS, to see the red zone first hand and the nurses and doctors being so kind and wonderful to us all was humbling. I’m ok tonight because of them. #SaveOurNHS #WearAMask #COVID19
Samantha Morton ended her grateful message with a plea to others to wear a mask. Morton’s tweet is a reminder that the professionals working in response to COVID-19 are those that are most exposed to the virus, and they take that risk to help people like Morton who have fallen ill.
Samantha Morton’s tweet may be humbling to fans too. Her character on The Walking Dead was one who survived by her own strength and didn't rely on others for comfort. Alpha, as the name would suggest, was a confident leader, and she demanded Beta and the Whisperers to show the same strength in order to survive as a pack. It’s also interesting to consider someone who spent the majority of their time inside a zombie suit made of actual dead people being susceptible to a virus. But she's definitely not talking about a skin mask in the tweet above.
Although her role in the zombie series increased her level of fame, Samantha Morton is known as a fierce actress who plays strong roles. She is a two-time Oscar-nominated actress and has even directed a semi-autobiographical film.
It’s sometimes difficult to differentiate actors from the characters they play, but, especially in cases like this, we must. COVID is a very real threat that has not only disrupted the lives of a whole lot of people over the past year, but has also killed well over a million people in that same time frame.
In Samantha Morton’s case, it thankfully looks like she’s on the mend. While Morton likely won't be returning to The Walking Dead, unless she pops up in the in-development anthology series, the 11th and final season of The Walking Dead will hopefully begin airing at the end of this year. (Fingers crossed for no more delays!) As always, check back with CinemaBlend for more updates on your favorite shows.
