A 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 group of actresses who viewers should keep their eyes on:

Lovie Simone

Lovie Simone Oppong – known professional as Lovie Simone – is a twentysomething actress who was born in The Bronx, New York City. She studied at an acting school in New York before landing a recurring role in the OWN drama series Greenleaf in 2016. She would continue to appear in the show for five seasons as a series regular starting in the show’s second season. She also appeared in episodes of Orange Is the New Black and Blue Bloods in 2017.

She made her film debut in 2018 in the drama movie Monster, starring opposite Jennifer Hudson, Jeffrey Wright and John David Washington (yes, that’s Denzel’s son). The following year she appeared in the films Selah and the Spades, which aired on Amazon Prime and Share, which aired on HBO. During the height of the pandemic she was one of the leads in the horror flick The Craft: Legacy, the sequel to the 1996 cult film The Craft. All this landed her on the Variety Power of Young Hollywood list twice.

In 2021, she starred in the first season of the Starz crime drama Power Book III: Raising Kanan and over the last couple of years she appeared in the following movies: The Walk in 2022 starring alongside Justin Chatwin, Malcolm McDowell, Terrence Howard and Jeremy Piven; The Young Wife in 2023, starring with Kiersey Clemons and musician/actor Leon Bridges and 57 Seconds in 2023, appearing with Josh Hutcherson and Morgan Freeman.

Her latest project is the period piece Apple TV+ limited series Manhunt in which she portrays Mary Simms and stars opposite Tobias Menzies. The next new episode of Manhunt will air this Friday.

Lovie is now based in Atlanta and fans can follow her on Instagram here.

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Harriet Slater

The almost 30-year-old English actress first joined a local youth theatre group at the ripe age of 6, and Harriet’s been following that path ever since, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Acting from the Guildford School of Acting in 2016. She appeared in a couple of shorts then made her professional debut that year in The Man with the Hammer at the Plymouth Theatre Royal, and appeared in several other theatre roles after that.

She made her TV debut in 2019 in the former EPIX (now MGM+) DC Universe series Pennyworth, which has since moved over to HBO Max (now Max). She had a recurring role in the show’s first season and then joined the main cast in the show’s next two seasons. And she also appeared in a 2020 episode of All Creatures Great and Small.

Her feature film debut was in the 2020 indie fantasy film Emily and the Magical Journey followed a few years later by a small role in the 2023 film Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. She also appeared in the horror flick True Haunting and will be seen next month’s horror flick Tarot. In 2023, she was named a Bright Young Thing by the British magazine Tatler.

She most recently appeared in the MGM+ sequel series Belgravia: The Next Chapter, playing the lead role of Clara Dunn Trenchard. The series finished its first season run on March 10, but you can watch it via Apple TV+ here. But it will be her upcoming role in the Starz prequel series Outlander: Blood of My Blood, playing the role of Jamie Fraser’s mother Ellen MacKenzie, that will garner her the most attention. She will star opposite relative newcomer Jamie Roy, who will play her 18th century Scottish love Brian Fraser. This prequel series is currently in production, and is anticipated, by some, to air sometime (hopefully) in 2025.

Fans can follow Harriet on Instagram here.