Devil Wears Prada star Simone Ashley feels 'proud' of her career
Simone Ashley has explained why she feels so "proud" to work in the film business.
Simone Ashley feels "really proud to be representing girls that look like [her]".
The 31-year-old actress has enjoyed a meteoric rise in recent years, starring in the hit Netflix show Bridgerton and now appearing in The Devil Wears Prada 2 - but Simone insists she doesn't take any of her success for granted.
Simone - who stars alongside Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt and Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada 2 - told The Hollywood Reporter: "I’m really aware of the position I’m in and I’m really proud to be representing girls that look like me in all different kinds of industries.
"I think it goes beyond the entertainment industry. I want women to know, even if I’m the face of L’Oreal Paris globally, that speaks to women in a different way, all these different things. But that’s my position."
Simone thinks her own success also reflects changing attitudes in the TV and film industry.
The actress - who stars alongside Jonathan Bailey in Bridgerton - said: "I think the change really comes as a ripple effect behind the scenes. So it’s representation in the writers rooms, in producing partners, in directors, the whole thing. Once you have the material that requires actors of diverse communities, I think that’s the source. And that’s what the world’s hungry for.
"In a world of AI, we don’t want to see repetition; we want to see a real representation of the world. So in my position, I hope me saying that, it creates a ripple effect that behind the scenes, there’s more push for diverse kinds of stories."
Simone also explained that she's learned to drown out external noise when she works.
Speaking about her Devil Wears Prada experience, Simone shared: "It maybe used to be when I was in my mid-20s, and I think the more I’ve been working — and it goes beyond just movies, like if I’m doing a shoot on the street or whatever it might be — you [learn you’re] there to do your job, you have to be professional.
"We’ve chosen to shoot on location for a reason, they’ve not done it randomly, and it’s to get the shot to look as amazing as possible, and we all want it to look amazing."
