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:

[Photo Credit: DMCA]

Sadie Soverall

Sadie Soverall is a twentysomething British actress who was born in the South London Borough of Wandsworth. She was discovered by a talent agent through a school production of Twelfth Night and the first job she booked was a “tiny role” in the 2019 independent film called Rose Plays Julie, which was filmed in Ireland.

She followed that up with a role in the Netflix teen fantasy series Fate: The Winx Saga, which was the live-action adaptation of the animated series Winx Club. At the same time, she was completing her A Levels (basically the UK’s version of completing high school).

Her next film roles were the 2023 thriller film Little Bone Lodge, where she starred opposite Joely Richardson, and that same year’s Saltburn, the dark comedy thriller from Emerald Fennell that included among its cast Jacob Elordi, Carey Mulligan, Barry Keoghan and Rosamund Pike.

The following year she had a role in the horror flick Arcadian that starred Nicolas Cage, and then she appeared in the British mystery thriller TV series The Gathering, starring alongside British actors Richard Coyle and Warren Brown. That same year, she appeared on stage in the play The Cherry Orchard in both London and New York.

Last year she was named a Star of Tomorrow by Screen International, a British film magazine that covers the international film business.

[Photo Credit: Cate Cameron-Amazon Prime]

This year has been busy for Sadie as she appeared in the British rom-com film Finding Emily, starring alongside Angourie Rice and Minnie Driver and appeared on the London stage in the play John Proctor Is the Villain. Her current role is in the Amazon Prime romantic drama Every Year After, which is a series adaptation of the Carley Fortune novel. Ironically, she appears in this new series alongside Abigail Cowen, her Fate: The Winx Saga co-star who played her sister in the series.

Sadie has shared in an interview that she can’t “imagine doing (anything other than acting), but (she) didn’t really have the confidence when (she) was younger, so this is very much a shocking dream come true.”

Every Year After is currently airing episodes on Amazon Prime, as it debuted online on June 10.

Sadie can be followed on Instagram here.

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[Photo Credit: Zackery Michael-Variety]

Ella Bright

Ella Bright is the soon-to-be 20-year-old actress and singer, whose dad hails from Oklahoma and whose mom comes from California, was born in New York but grew up in North London; ergo her very British accent tends to throw viewers off when she speaks with a near perfect American accent.

As a child, she took performing arts classes in acting, singing, and dance. She attended school in South Hampstead in London and completed her A Levels last year.

While still in school, Ella made her TV debut in a 2015 episode of the TNT crime drama Legends, that included among its cast Sean Bean, Morris Chestnut and Ali Larter. Then in 2017, she made her stage debut on the West End of London in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, following that up one year later with her feature film debut in the comedy flick Holmes & Watson.

From 2020 to last year, she appeared in the CBBC, a free-to-air British public broadcasting network, TV series Malory Towers, which is based on the books by Enid Blyton, for which she received nominations for the British Academy Children’s Awards and the Children’s and Family Emmy Awards. It was during this time that she also appeared in an episode of the final season of the Netflix hit series The Crown, playing a young Catherine Middleton.

[Photo Credit: Amazon Prime]

It was around this time, while Ella was preparing for her A Levels, that she went on an audition and ended up booking that gig. That gig just happened to be the Amazon Prime TV series Off Campus, which is an adaptation of the novel by Elle Kennedy.

Off Campus debuted on Amazon Prime just a little over a month ago, reached 36 million viewers in its first 12 days and has topped the charts worldwide. She and the rest of the cast will soon be heading back to Vancouver to start filming the second season of the show.

She currently lives in London with her family.

Ella can be followed on Instagram here.