1 May 2026
Simone Ashley “fell in love with film and TV” as a teenager.
Simone Ashley has enjoyed a meteoric rise
The 31-year-old actress – who stars in The Devil Wears Prada 2 alongside Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt and Anne Hathaway – initially dreamed of becoming a musician, before she switched her focus towards acting during her teenage years.
Asked what made her want to pursue an acting career, Simone told The Hollywood Reporter: “Funnily enough, I actually started singing when I was seven years old. I did a lot of classical singing and piano playing, a lot of that kind of training. And I wanted to pursue music initially.
“Then I started doing more musical theatre, quickly realised that I maybe didn’t want that as a priority in my career. And then I fell in love with film and TV when I was a teenager.
“And then I just put myself out there and I got Sex Education. And after that, Bridgerton, and then the ball just kept rolling, and I like to work with what I’ve got. So that was kind of the journey.”
Simone relished the experience of working with a star-studded cast on The Devil Wears Prada 2.
Simone actually felt nervous before each day of shooting, but she was made to feel at home by her co-stars.
The actress – who also stars alongside the likes of Jonathan Bailey, Adjoa Andoh, Nicola Coughlan, and Luke Thompson in Bridgerton – shared: “So grateful, had so much fun doing a movie like this. And I’m really proud that I developed a sense of confidence whilst doing this movie because I was nervous coming every day to set, working with these incredible actors, Academy Award-winning actors, and also the pressure of coming into a sequel of a really iconic movie.
“But thanks to the amazing environment it was on set with the cast and crew, but also I just threw myself into it. And it was summer in New York and I was filming this movie and I just tried to be present and have a blast. Probably one of the most fun moments in my career.”
