Salute to Rising Stars

It’s time, again, to salute those actresses who are on the move, actresses who deserve a little extra attention for their latest work, those actresses who are rising stars. Landing that crucial role in a TV movie or guest appearance in a successful show or film makes all the difference for aspiring actors.

Let’s take a look at the next two actresses who viewers should keep their eye on:

Ella Purnell

Ella Purnell is a London-born actress who beat out hundreds of other girls for a role in the stage play Oliver! at the Theatre Royal in London, where she remained as part of the ensemble for a year.

She then landed a role in the 2010 box office film Never Let Me Go, playing the younger version of Keira Knightley’s character, which led to her roles in the 2010 film Ways to Live Forever and the 2011 film Intruders.

In 2013 she appeared alongside Chloe Grace Moretz in the film Kick-Ass 2 and the following year she was in the film Maleficent, playing the younger version of Angelina Jolie. Over the next three years she appeared in the TV movie Cyberbully, 2016 box office film Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and the box office film Churchill.

Currently, she plays Tess, the lead character in the Starz half-hour drama Sweetbitter, which will air its season finale this Sunday, June 10

Maddie Hasson

Maddie Hasson was born in North Carolina where she was a competitive dancer for 8 years. She also performed in a variety of stage productions, including Grey Gardens and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.

Her first television role was in the 2012 short-lived crime drama The Finder alongside Geoff Stults. That same year she also appeared in an episode of the popular NBC fairytale drama Grimm and she was the star of the short-lived Freeform drama Twisted in 2013.

Maddie landed her first adult role in the 2015 box office movie I Saw the Light, playing Billie Jean Jones, the second wife and widow of legendary country singer Hank Williams, who was portrayed by Tom Hiddleston.

In 2017, she starred opposite Melissa Leo, Julianne Nicholson and Dianna Agron in the independent film Novitate; and that same year she appeared in the AT&T Network drama Mr. Mercedes that airs exclusive on DirecTV.

Starting this Wednesday (June 6), Maddie will star as Henrietta “Henry” Coles, a teenager who discovers she has the ability to teleport, in the YouTube Red streaming series Impulse based on the novel by Steven Gould.

Here is to Ella and Maddie as rising stars!

Make sure to check out last month’s salute to rising stars here.

Please be on the look-out for more salutes to rising stars in the future.