Simone Ashley

Simone Ashley, born Simone Ashwini Pillai on March 30, 1995, in Camberley, Surrey, England, demonstrated an early interest in the arts, despite her parents’ academic backgrounds. She pursued her passion, attending Redroofs Theatre School and later Arts Educational Schools in West London for acting. Her professional acting career began in 2016 with minor roles in television. Her first credited acting role was in two episodes of the CBBC fantasy teen drama “Wolfblood” as Zuhra. This was followed by appearances in series such as “Guilt” (2016) and “Broadchurch” (2017). She made her feature film debut in 2018 with a small part in “Boogie Man” as Aarti and a more significant role in “Kill Ben Lyk” as ‘The Girl’.

Ashley gained wider recognition for her recurring role as Olivia Hanan in the Netflix comedy-drama “Sex Education,” appearing in 14 episodes from 2019 to 2021. During this period, she also featured in the ITV psychological thriller miniseries “The Sister” (2020) as Elise Fox. A significant turning point in her career came in February 2021 when she was cast as the female lead, Kate Sharma, in the second season of Shondaland’s Netflix romance period drama “Bridgerton.” Her performance in “Bridgerton,” released in March 2022, established her as a prominent actress, leading to her reprising the role for the third season and earning her an IMDb Breakout STARmeter Award in 2022.

Her career continued to advance with her inclusion in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list in European entertainment (2022) and Time’s 100 Next list (2022). Ashley also expanded into film, playing Indira in Disney’s live-action adaptation of “The Little Mermaid” (2023). She has taken on voice roles, including Rose in “10 Lives” (2024) and Alice in “The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland” (2024), and an executive producer credit on “Picture This” (2025), where she also stars as Pia. In 2024, she became L’Oréal Paris UK&I Ambassador and is scheduled to star in “The Devil Wears Prada 2” in 2026.