Early work and international breakthrough (2011-2020) Costa starred in the music video for Portrait's song "Today Is the Day." She made her television debut as Inés Flores in the 2011 daily television series
Bandolera, followed by an episodic appearance in the 2012 historical drama television series
Toledo. That same year, she made her film debut as a background 'Chica Serpiente' in the drama film
I Want You. The following year, Costa starred as Rym, a girl with breast cancer, who becomes the roommate of Lleó, portrayed by
Àlex Monner, winner of the
International Emmy Award for Best Kids TV Series, adapted by
Steven Spielberg for North America as
Red Band Society; and in
La Bien Querida's music video for her song "Arenas Movedizas". On stage, later that year, she was cast as Maria Kapravof in her first professional play,
Atraco, paliza y muerte en Agbanäspach by Nao Albet and Marcel Borràs at the
Teatre Nacional de Catalunya. For the role, Costa, whose text was entirely written in German, learned it by heart.
Nuvol remarked, "It's surprising how Laia Costa's conviction as a somewhat hipster-esque femme fatale, plays her role entirely in German". This led to a role as Claudia in the short film
Y otro año, perdices, and as Alba in the period drama television series
The Time in Between. She also starred in
Yuriy Moroz's adventure and fantasy film
Fort Ross. This was Costa's first international credit in a production. The same year, Costa played Calda in the special reading of Magdalena Barile's
Llum o de les potencialitats lluminoses del cos humà at the
Festival Grec de Barcelona, and starred in the anthology television series
Cuéntame un cuento in a twisted remake of the traditional fairy tale
Little Red Riding Hood. Costa starred as the titular character in
Victoria, a crime thriller film directed by
Sebastian Schipper, which was almost entirely improvised by the actors; the 134-minute film was shot in a single take. It premiered at the
2015 Berlin International Film Festival to critical acclaim. The role represented her breakthrough, with
The New York Times including her in 2015’s "Breakthrough Performances of the Fall Season".
The Observer stated "Costa gives a terrific, affecting and, by the end, intensely unsettling performance." In relation to the acting rules during the shooting, Costa was given instructions by Schipper stating, "You cannot repeat the same action, ever. You have to go through the scene, but always in different ways. Even if it is no good. Never, never repeat a sentence, an action. Keep it real." This rule led her to discover the character in a deeper way, blending different versions by the end of the process. She won the
German Film Award for Best Actress, the
Gaudí Award for Best Female Lead, the
Sant Jordi Award for Best Actress in a Foreign Film, and was nominated for a
European Film Award for Best European Actress. Her next projects that year were
Cites, the Catalan remake of the British TV series
Dates, the historical fiction television series
Carlos, rey emperador where she portrayed
Mary of Austria, and the period melodrama
Habitaciones cerradas, based on
Care Santos's novel of the same name. Costa held the lead role in the short film
No me quites as Laura, who eagerly waits at her house for her ex-boyfriend Luis to return after a two-month absence. Laura Jou, director of the short film, came across Costa during one of her studio courses and was profoundly struck. When speaking about the actress, she remarked, "She had naturalness but also an overwhelming magnetism." Her portrayal earned her the Best Actress in a Short Film at the 19th Málaga Film Festival. In her final performance of 2015, Costa played a minor role in
Fernando González Molina's romantic drama
Palm Trees in the Snow. in 2018 In 2016, she starred opposite
Jean Reno in
Estrella Damm's short film titled
The Little Things. During the filming of the project, Reno highlighted Costa's acting qualities, stating "I really like what you do, I don't know if it's talent or hard work, but I don't mind." Her next film the following year was Martín Hodara's Argentine–Spanish thriller
Black Snow. It co-starred
Ricardo Darín and
Leonardo Sbaraglia. The film premiered theatrically in Argentina on 19 January 2017. Her second release in 2017 was
Drake Doremus's romantic drama
Newness, in which she starred alongside
Nicholas Hoult. It premiered at the
Sundance Film Festival. In February 2017, Costa was nominated for the
BAFTA Rising Star Award. Costa starred in five feature films in 2018. She co-starred alongside
Christopher Abbott and
Mia Wasikowska in
Nicolas Pesce's psychological horror-thriller
Piercing, based on the
novel of the same name by
Ryū Murakami; it premiered at the
2018 Sundance Film Festival. In the 2018
Tribeca Film Festival, she starred in two films that premiered there:
Miguel Arteta's romantic comedy
Duck Butter alongside
Alia Shawkat, and Matthew Brown's drama
Maine, opposite
Thomas Mann. Additionally, Costa held the role of executive producer for the latter film. Later that year, she was part of an ensemble cast in
Dan Fogelman's drama film
Life Itself with
Sergio Peris-Mencheta and
Antonio Banderas. It premiered at the
2018 Toronto International Film Festival. Costa starred opposite
Josh O'Connor in
Harry Wootliff's critically acclaimed directorial debut
Only You. She portrayed Elena, a Spanish arts council worker who falls in love with a student who is almost a decade younger, only for the relationship to founder as the couple faces infertility issues. It premiered in competition at the
BFI London Film Festival, on 19 October 2018;
Mark Kermode called her performance "flawless". She then filmed the international co-produced Italian English language television series released in 2020
Devils co-starring along
Patrick Dempsey based on the international bestseller novel of the same name by Guido Maria Brera. That same year, Costa starred alongside an ensemble cast in the American science fiction television anthology series
Soulmates, in the third episode of the first season titled "Little Adventures", directed by
Marco Kreuzpaintner and written by
Jessica Knappett and
Brett Goldstein & William Bridges.
Acclaimed at home and prominent star (2022–present) in 2023 Costa returned to the
Berlinale to premiere
Lullaby by
Alauda Ruiz de Azúa, which premiered in the Panorama section on 11 February 2022. Subsequently, the film screened at the
25th Málaga Film Festival on 20 March 2022, where it was the grand winner of the edition with the Golden Biznaga for Best Spanish Film, the Silver Biznaga for Best Screenplay, and the Silver Biznaga for Best Female Performance for Costa and
Susi Sánchez. She received the script for
Lullaby during her third month of pregnancy in 2019, and the exploration of motherhood and caregiving in the film resonated with her personal experiences. As Costa expressed herself to
Vanity Fair Spain: Filming while going through her own early motherhood journey provided an authentic connection with her character, Costa learned to convey emotions subtly in the film, appreciating the depth of caregiving as an act of love. Despite the physical challenges, the close-knit cast and Ruiz de Azúa's direction made the experience enriching. The key lesson Costa took away was to trust her intuition and embrace projects aligned with her stage of life, finding personal satisfaction beyond external outcomes. the
Platino Award for Best Actress, and received a
CEC Awards nomination for Best Actress. Costa was also part of an ensemble cast in
Alibi's British political thriller series
The Diplomat, which premiered on 28 February 2023. She then starred in the Spanish film
The Enchanted by Elena Trapé, which premiered as part of the official section of the
26th Málaga Film Festival on March 12, 2023. Costa also starred in the revival of the Catalan romantic drama TV series titled
Cites Barcelona, reprising the role of Paula after 7 years. The series premiered on June 13th on the streaming service
Amazon Prime Video. She took on the lead role in the film adaptation of
Sara Mesa's novel,
Un amor, directed by Isabel Coixet, playing Nat, a young woman who escapes to the town of La Escapa to rebuild her life, contending with the distrust of neighbors, the hostility of the landlord, and a disturbing sexual proposal from her neighbor Andreas. The film debuted at the
71st San Sebastián International Film Festival on 26 September 2023. For her performance, she once again secured nominations for a
Goya Award for Best Actress, a
Feroz Award for Best Main Actress in a Film, a Forqué Award for Best Film Actress, and won her second
Platino Award for Best Actress. Costa also played the character of
Moghedien, one of the Forsaken, in Amazon Video's adaptation of
Robert Jordan's
fantasy epic,
The Wheel of Time. Her initial appearance was in the second season's finale, which aired on October 6, 2023. In preparation for the role, Costa worked closely with a movement coach and studied how spiders move, feed, and attack in order to shape the character's physicality and presence. She also incorporated a childlike dimension, drawing inspiration from her young daughter's energy and uninhibited mannerisms. The role marked her first portrayal of an antagonist. Additionally, she co-starred in the Spanish historical drama
The Teacher Who Promised the Sea by Patricia Font, which had its global premiere on October 27, 2023, at the
68th Valladolid International Film Festival. In February 2024, Costa was named one of the 50 most influential women in Spanish cinema and audiovisual industry by Forbes Women. On March 25, 2025, it was reported that Costa will next star with
Jack Reynor in
Lee Cronin's
The Mummy reboot. She was cast after Cronin saw the trailer for
Lullaby, later describing her as "very instinctive" and well suited to the role of a mother in the film's family-centered reinterpretation of the classic monster narrative. Costa has stated that the project marked her first major experience in the horror genre, which she had largely avoided since adolescence due to a personal aversion to it, and characterized the shoot as physically and emotionally demanding within a high-intensity production environment. She is set to lead the cast of
Cruzados, an upcoming
Netflix heist thriller directed by
Daniel Sánchez Arévalo. ==Personal life==