Salute to Rising Stars

It’s that 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:

Ashleigh LaThrop

Ashleigh LaThrop was born into a big family (she has 10 siblings) in Chicago. When she was a little girl she wanted to be a “ballerina doctor,” at 8 she wanted to be a pediatrician, at 13 a neurosurgeon and then at 17 she firmly decided to be a psychologist. But then she saw the play Metamorphoses and that changed her life. That was when she announced she was going to do theatre instead.

She studied at the University of Illinois, spending a summer in the Steppenwolf education program before taking to the stage, including appearing in a performance of Metamorphoses, the play that started her on her acting path. Among her other theatre work were the plays Motortown, in which she was nominated for a 2014 Joseph Jefferson Non-Equity Award for Actress in a Principal Role in a Play and Balm in Gilead, in which she was nominated for a 2015 Joseph Jefferson Non-Equity Award for Actress in a Principal Role in a Play (and she and the cast of that play were also nominated for Award for Ensemble for the same awards that year).

In 2014, she made her small screen debut in an episode of Chicago P.D. and followed that by a short recurring role in the comedy Sirens and an appearance in an episode of Bones. In 2017, she landed the role of Hannah in the box office movie Fifty Shades Darker and then she reprised that role in 2018’s Fifty Shades Freed. That year she also appeared in episodes of the short-lived series Reverie as well as The Rookie.

Ashleigh followed those roles up with recurring roles in The Handmaid’s Tale, the post-apocalyptic series The 100 and Netflix’s The Kominsky Method. She will next be seen in a lead role in the upcoming Amazon series Utopia, starring alongside Rainn Wilson (The Office), Dan Byrd (Cougar Town), Jessica Rothe (the Happy Death Day franchise) and John Cusack (Say Anything and High Fidelity) [among others].

When she isn’t busy working, Ashleigh enjoys dancing, reading (she loves “old fashioned” paper books), cooking and spending time with her family in Chicago. When asked about the best piece of advice she received, she shared she was told, “Everybody is somebody. Be nice to everyone and be humble.” [Great words to live by!]

[Sources: Ashleigh’s Official Website and Pop Culturalist]

Ashleigh can be followed on Twitter @ashleighlathrop and on Instagram.

Utopia will debut on Amazon Prime on September 25.

Melia Kreiling

Melia was born in Geneva, Switzerland; but she grew up in Athens, Greece where she attended an English school before attending the National State School of Dance. She later moved to Great Britain, studying at the University of Winchester and the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in Leeds. She also received additional acting education at the London School of Dramatic Art.

She made her debut in a 2011 short called Room to Forget and then appeared in a TV show about Rosamunde Pilcher in 2012 and then in 2013 she appeared in the period piece drama The Borgias as well as the mini-series The Bible.

In 2014, she appeared as Bereet, the purple-skinned beauty who Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) forgot was on his ship in the beginning section of the box office film Guardians of the Galaxy. She also appeared in the box office movie MindGamers with The Walking Dead and Prodigal Son star Tom Payne, 9-1-1 cast member Oliver Stark and veteran actor Sam Neill.

Her recent TV work includes a recurring role on Tyrant, the Amazon series The Last Tycoon with Matt Bomer and Kelsey Grammer and the second season of the CBS drama Salvation. Her next big role will be that of Ginger Sweet in the upcoming FOX soap opera-esque series Filthy Rich where she will star opposite Kim Cattrall (Sex and the City).

Melia can be followed on Twitter @Melia_Kreiling; on Instagram and on her Official Facebook page.

Filthy Rich will debut on FOX on September 21 at 9 PM.

Here is to Ashleigh and Melia as rising stars!

Make sure to check our previous salute to rising stars here.

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