Born in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England, on October 28, 1982, Matt Smith attended a state secondary school, Northampton School for Boys. He excelled early at sports, playing for youth football (soccer) teams Northampton Town F.C., Nottingham Forest F.C., and Leicester City F.C. Smith dreamed of playing professional football, but a serious back injury, spondylosis, curtailed that plan.

Besides appearing in various film shorts, Smith starred in the British film Womb (aka Clone) in 2010 and also had a supporting role in Terminator Genisys in 2015. He is appeared in the thriller Patient Zero and also played infamous cult leader Charles Manson in Charlie Says.