Maia Morgenstern was born in Bucharest, Romania, to a Jewish family, Maia Morgensen graduated from the Film and Theatre Academy of Bucharest in 1985. Maia then played at the Youth Theatre in Piatra Neamț until 1988, and at the State Jewish Theatre in Bucharest from 1988 to 1990. From 1990 to 1998, she was a member of the National Theatre company in Bucharest. Maia has been a member of Teatrul Bulandra since 1998, which is also in Bucharest. In 1992, she starred in Balanța as Nela, a film set during the days of Communist Romania and is best known in the United States as The Oak. 

In 1993, she won a European Film Award for Best Actress in Balanța. From 2001 to 2002, she starred in a Romanian-language production of The Blue Angel at Bucharest’s Odeon Theatre as, Lola Lola, the character made famous by Marlene Dietrich. At the same time, she also played the role of Kathleen Hogan in a Romanian-language production of Israel Horovitz’s Park Your Car in Harvard Yard at the State Jewish Theatre. In 2004, Maia portrayed the Blessed Virgin Mary in Mel Gibson’s epic biblical drama The Passion of the Christ and performed the Aramaic language. The Passion of the Christ is the highest-grossing independent film of all time, grossing $612 million worldwide.