Simone Ashley bio, height, parents, boyfriend, net worth 2025

Biography of Simone Ashley

Simone Ashley is a British actress of Indian heritage who rose to fame playing Kate Sharma in the hit series "Bridgerton" and starring in Netflix's coming-of-age series "Sex Education". She's passionate about swimming and music, and loves to travel.

Childhood and Family

Simone Ashwini Pillai, known professionally as Simone Ashley, was born on March 30, 1995 in Camberley, England. Her parents, Lata and Gunasekaran Pillai, are Indian scientists who relocated to Britain. She has an older brother with whom she shares a close bond.

From an early age, the future star loved mimicking adults and "playing actress." She eagerly performed for her parents and guests, completely comfortable in the spotlight. It is not surprising that even at a young age, Ashley dreamed of acting in films. "Being spontaneous and acting is something I've always loved, and my desire to pursue this dream was never in question," Simone revealed.

Bridgerton's Simone Ashley Spills the Tea on Her Life & Kate Sharma | Glamour

However, her parents had different ideas: initially, they didn't support their daughter's acting ambitions. The family hoped Simone would pursue a more "serious" career, but she stood firm. "You can't always do what parents, friends, teachers or partners expect of you," Ashley explains, adding that creativity, music, and cinema have always captivated her and represent what she wants to dedicate her life to.

Simone says she completely understood why her parents reacted to her decision with doubt and even fear. After all, they'd struggled in a foreign country and had come so far. Unlike them, Simone was born in Britain with options, and she didn't hesitate for a second in choosing an acting career.

Acting isn't Ashley's only passion—she's also deeply passionate about music. She learned piano and says her favorite songs were constantly playing at home. She especially loved rock'n roll, thanks to her father's influence.

Simone has dreamed of singing since childhood. She fell in love with theater and musicals at an early age. She still enjoys classical music today. Fans have praised her musical talents and clear voice.

As a teenager, she lived with relatives in California for a while before returning to Britain. Here she attended Redroofs Theatre School in Berkshire and Arts Educational School in West London.

Acting career

In 2016, Simone began her acting career and pursued every audition opportunity. At first she got episodic roles in TV projects "Wolfblood" and "Guilt." The following year, she appeared in "Broadchurch" and "Strike", where she also appeared with small roles.

In 2018, Ashley starred in an episode of the TV series "Doctors" and in the horror movie "Boogie Man" (her first work in a feature film) and "Kill Ben Lyk".

Ashley continued landing small roles until her 2019 breakthrough: Simone was invited to the series "Sex Education", produced by Netflix. Ashley landed the role of high school student Olivia Hanan, one of the "clients" of Otis (Asa Butterfield), the son of a sex therapist. The actress didn't have much screen time, but she was definitely remembered by the audience.

"This project has changed my life, and I am eternally grateful. I learned a lot, and it was a real pleasure!" – said Simone afterwards.

When filming wrapped, Ashley admitted that she was very upset, because during production she had bonded with the cast and crew. Nevertheless, she had real success ahead of her "Bridgerton" series, where she was to play Kate Sharma. The series also featured actors like Phoebe Dynevor and Jonathan Bailey, starred there.

The actress explained her impressions from the shoot in an interview. Of course, the role that helped her gain popularity was a huge success, but in the process of working on the project she had a hard time.

Throughout the series, she had to wear a corset to make her waist slimmer, and it was very uncomfortable: "I realized one thing: if you want to wear a corset, you just shouldn't eat. I had constant pain because of it, and I even hurt my shoulder!" She shared memories of the first time she tried on this uncomfortable accessory. Then Ashley ate a hearty meal, and it turned out to be a huge mistake: her beautiful dress got stained when she threw up…

As for the role itself, Simone says that the image of Kate is somehow close to her. She loves her character's sharp intelligence, her sense of proportion and clarity of thinking, as well as the ability to think strategically when tackling major problems. Also Ashley, like Kate, loves to ride.

Simone Ashley on Being Cast in Bridgerton, Going to the Vanity Fair Oscars Party & Giving Tattoos

The actress also admits that landing this role was huge for her as a woman of color, because it is much more difficult for Indian women to break into Hollywood, and even more so to get the main roles. Ashley won't stay quiet when people from different ethnic communities are being hurt.

Being a person of colour, we're not unitary, we're not one thing. There are so many different communities within that umbrella term. We should be more specific about making sure we're representing different groups of people.

Ashley could also be seen in the projects "Sparrow", "Detective Pikachu", "Because the Night" – mostly in episodic roles.

Personal life of Simone Ashley

Simone admits that she is a very romantic person. She's not afraid to cry, feel deeply, and love fully. That is why she easily manages to convey on the screen the feelings that the directors demand, while staying true to her emotions off-screen too.

Simone Ashley: In The Bag | British Vogue

However, little is known about Simone's personal life. While working on "Bridgerton" series, she had great chemistry with her co-star Jonathan Bailey, and many viewers were sure that there was an affair between them. The rumors weren't true – Jonathan is actually gay.

According to different sources, Simone is worth an estimated $4 million.

Simone Ashley Now

The actress is keeping busy with new projects. In 2022, she was busy filming The Little Mermaid with Holly Lynn Bailey. In addition, Ashley will continue to participate in the series "Bridgerton", which, due to the phenomenal success, was immediately renewed for 4 seasons.

The girl still loves to sing: she hopes to pursue her musical dreams and believes she can make it big in the music world.