Inspirational Women In Hollywood: How Actress Ashley Dulaney Is Helping To Shake Up The Entertainment Industry

Because of the stories we tell. Diversity is the gift of life. We are all coming from different backgrounds, cultures and life experiences. Showing diversity is showing life and the truth of our world.

As a part of our series about Inspirational Women In Hollywood, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Ashley Dulaney.

After starring alongside Patricia Arquette and Joey King in Hulu’s 2X Emmy nominated series “The Act,” breakout star Ashley Dulaney is taking Hollywood by storm leading two upcoming feature films Passionflix’s first romantic comedy, SEDUCTION & SNACKS, out Thursday, October 28TH, and A TASTE OF LOVE, out in 2022.

Based on USA Today bestselling author Tara Sivec’s 3-part book series, SEDUCTION & SNACKS tells the story of Claire, a twenty-something single mom that grudgingly helps her best friend Jenny (Dulaney), sell sex toys while she attempts to make enough money to start her own business to give her foul-mouthed, but extremely loveable (when he’s asleep) toddler a better life. SEDUCTION & SNACKS in Passion Flix’s first romantic comedy project and will be released on the platforms streaming service on Thursday, October 28TH.

Struggling to find her culinary voice as a Network TV star, A TASTE OF LOVE revolves around Taylor and her world of friends as she returns to her hometown to visit her parents. She must choose between her renewed relationship, saving her family restaurant, or her dream career as a worldwide-known chef. In the film, Ashley brings to life ‘Linda,’ one of the leading ensemble cast members.

Growing up in Tupelo, Mississippi, Ashley knew she was destined to be in front of the camera and took to acting at a very young age while in preschool. Ever since her first role as a caterpillar in a local school production, she caught the acting bug and dedicated her life to her craft. After graduating from high school, Ashley attended and graduated from Ole Miss with a BFA in acting. After being scouted by agents and managers, Ashley made the big move to Los Angeles in 2009 where she began auditioning and taking extra gigs to pay the bills. Ashley got her first big break on FX’s “Justified with a strong character arc throughout the final season. From there Ashley continued booking gigs and stared as the co-lead in Lifetime’s BABYSITTER BLACKBOOK, and later went on to portray the evil ‘Rebecca’ in Lifetime’s THE HOUSE SITTER. Ashley has also worked on popular series including NBC’s “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” FOX’ “9–1–1-: Lone Star,” ABC’s “The Middle.” ABC’s “Scandal,” as well as NBC’s “Days of Our Lives,” to name a few.

When Ashley isn’t busy in front of the camera, she loves to work out regularly by hiking or taking aerial yoga classes. Ashley is also a fierce advocate for animal shelters and has a white rescue cat named Posey Parker, named after one of her favorite actors, Parker Posey, and a black cat named Bella.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?

Thank y’all so much for having me! I was born and raised in the South. I love where I come from and my family is all still there. I grew up exactly how you picture it, backroads and 4 wheelers. I grew up with my mom, dad and my sister. I had my great grandparents till I was in my 20’s, which was such a gift, and I’m very close to my grandmother. I went to college at Ole Miss, so not far from home. I had never been to LA, but I knew I would go as soon as I finished college and the month after graduation, that’s just what I did.

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

That’s the strange thing, I don’t ever really remember making that choice, I just always knew I would. I know that makes zero sense, haha. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure my days leading plays at my preschool made a lasting impact, but it was more. Just watching people laugh or feel emotion. I love that feeling of connecting with humans and having them feel what you’re feeling and I think it kind of took off from there. According to my grandmother, I would look at the TV and memorize lines to movies and say I was going to do that as a matter of fact as if I was saying what I was eating.

Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

Oh gosh, okay. There is one- and it’s a big one- but, out of respect to some people involved, I will stay vague. I had been hired to come on to a show to do seven lines, such a fun role, but a one-and-done kind of thing. I was sitting in my trailer for a really long time on the day, but man I was loving it- all the fluffy robe pictures you could ask for-and I was ready for my lines, so I just chilled. When I finally got called to set, something had happened and as soon as I walked in, I could feel the tension. In TV and Film, EVERY MOMENT MATTERS. EVERY MOMENT IS MONEY. The EP approaches me and asks something I will never forget, “How quickly can you learn lines?” Without missing a beat I said, “Really quick.” I didn’t know what was happening, but I got taken into a room and in 30 minutes tops we rewrote the scene and started rolling. I didn’t get to go back to my trailer to prep. I sat there with the EP and we ran it till the cameras got in position and then we did it. My seven lines went to five pages and I was leading the scene with the star of the show. Something just kicked in and I was never nervous or worried I wouldn’t be able to do it. I knew I could and I HAD A BLAST! That day changed my career. I didn’t know what that would lead to, I just knew I was there and ready. More than anything, it was one of the most fun days ever.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

That’s a two-part answer for me. The first one, when I first moved out I had no idea what I was doing, but had total confidence and just started looking up some really big agents and cold calling them. I wish I was joking but for one big agency, it worked. I ended up connecting with someone and she really liked me, so she said, “You know what, send me your stuff. I’m interested.” She gave me her email and we hung up. I went to email and I realized I didn’t understand the email. Side note, me and technology are not friends. Since I didn’t understand how the email worked, I called the private number back and said that I didn’t understand how to put it in. I WISH I WAS JOKING. This person was so kind and we both just realized maybe I needed to learn how emails work and THEN get an agent. Weirdly, this didn’t upset or discourage me. What I learned aside from how to work emails is how to google and figure answers out for myself.

For my second, my first couple weeks in LA I got invited to a giant soap call. Oh man, I was pumped. I went with my headshot from college, clearly ready to join the soap the next day and waited my three hours. When I finally got to the front, I stuck out my hand to every single casting person there. Then finally on my last one, I realized I was getting strange looks and someone said, “We don’t shake hands.” I look around to see no less than eight signs saying don’t offer your hand. I didn’t join the Soap the next day, but I did learn something that forever changed the game for me. READ SIGNS. Read the signs in casting offices. Read the notes casting and productions send you. Details!

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I can’t really list one. My grandmother is a big one. On the day of my college graduation, she gave me the money for my move. She is, and always will be, such a big part of my life and an endless source of support and love. I have a couple of friends that I truly wouldn’t be here without. I would truly be lost without them and one I don’t even speak to anymore, but she had such a lasting impact on my life.

My best friend saves me and pushes me daily. Really that list is impossible to narrow down to one because it does take a village. So many casting directors have pushed to give me breaks and my managers who have been with me since my first TV credit. I think we need so much from people and I try really hard to express gratitude daily to those that helped shape me in the past and my present.

You have been blessed with great success in a career path that can be challenging. Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path, but seem daunted by the prospect of failure?

Don’t look at the word failure. It’s meant to trip you up. You can’t fail if you’re doing what makes you happy. I think that’s the key. I love every single one-liner to recurring to lead in a film. I love every audition. I don’t get every role, but it’s never a failure if you are happy doing it. Love the work, and the hustle. Don’t just look towards the end goal or you will miss the whole ride and burn out. Each step is a gift, just be happy and enjoy.

What drives you to get up every day and work in TV and Film? What change do you want to see in the industry going forward?

I love what I do. I love prepping auditions, I love the process. I love that excitement of not knowing what role my team will send me that day and then getting to bring that person to life. It’s fresh and fun. I would like to see our humanity and compassion for each other be at the forefront of our minds more. Right now, as I write this, IATSE is moving towards a strike; The main reasons are basic rights- wages, turnaround times, things like that. Things that should be givens. I get it, it is a business but at the end of the day, we have to remember that the product doesn’t matter more than the humans creating it. People aren’t disposable and I guess in this world sometimes creatives feel they are and it’s so far from the truth.

You have such impressive work. What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? Where do you see yourself heading from here?

Thank you. I have really loved every project of which I have been a part. Right now, I just wrapped up the most magical Rom-Com. I can’t say too much but, I couldn’t stop smiling the whole time I was on set and can’t wait for it to be out there for everyone to see what we have been cooking up.

We are very interested in looking at diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture and our youth growing up today?

1. Diversity is important because it really #!@*&% matters. No child should ever grow up not seeing themselves represented. Growing up, I never saw a shortage of people who looked like me on Television and in Films. I never had to figure out that puzzle piece and to me, that was one of the biggest eye-openers of all in recent years- how that shapes you. How you view the world around you.

2. Because of the stories we tell. Diversity is the gift of life. We are all coming from different backgrounds, cultures and life experiences. Showing diversity is showing life and the truth of our world.

3. For so long I feel we told one type of story. One idea of beauty, one type of family, one view of the world with little room to go outside the lines. But that’s not the world. That’s not the truth, that’s fake. That’s the story that has the ability to lead to kids never feeling good enough, thinking something is wrong with them and changing themselves to fit into a mold that changes the beauty and uniqueness of them. Diversity changes that. It shows life in a real way. It NORMALIZES real life and it brings everyone to the table. We have come so far, but we still have so far to go. I think the more we strive for things to look like real life we allow not just children, but all ages to feel seen and heard.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.

The first week I got to LA I got very lucky because a family friend connected me with a friend who lived in LA and worked in casting. He kindly agreed to sit down with me for coffee. He weirdly told me 5 things that changed the game for me. So instead of what I wish, I would rather share what was so incredible for me and hope it helps someone reading this:

1. Be curious, ask questions. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes or look dumb. (Weirdly the handshaking and email probably didn’t hurt so bad cause we had talked about this).

2. Find that thing that you DO, that thing that is so YOU, and be memorable. I remember when I heard this thinking, “I’m an actor, clearly, I can do all the things.” That’s not what he meant and after a few years, I really understood this. Find that thing that you bring life in this world that is totally unique and yours. Maybe it’s the way you smile or laugh or sing at the end of words. I don’t know, but something that is yours, and find a way to keep that part of you alive each time you perform and bring that each time you walk into a room. THAT is being memorable because sadly we spend so much time being what we think others want us to be.

3. Make a list of the shows you want to see yourself on. Not necessarily the shows you’re obsessed with, but shows you would make sense to be in that world. Make that list and find a way to meet those Casting Directors. I personally love casting workshops. I LOVE the idea of learning from Casting. Not only does it demystify them to us, but we learn from the minds that see our mistakes and successes day after day. It’s truly a gift, you learn in a different way.

4. Take that list and use it to make a Goal List, be BIG with this but also be realistic. Maybe it’s, this year I’m going to book this Costar on this show, then a recurring, then I am going to do this play and this commercial. I’m going to do a small supporting in this film and lead in a film by the end of the year. You may not reach every goal, but I STILL do this every year! When I take down that list to make a new one it makes me smile. It gets your imagination going. You are putting it out into the universe and you know writing it you may not do everything, that’s ok. It’s just moving those limiting beliefs out of your way.

5. BE OK WITH THE TIME IT TAKES. This was so big for me. It’s not going to happen overnight. I mean some people it might, and congrats, but really it’s probably not. You have to be ok with that. I remember at coffee he said the quote, “Everyone thinks that overnight success happens overnight, but if you look closely it was 10–15 years in the making.”

Can you share with our readers any selfcare routines, practices or treatments that you do to help your body, mind or heart to thrive? Please share a story for each one if you can.

I actually have super sensitive skin and at any moment- or random makeup- I can have a horrible breakout. So one big one for me is my esthetician who is also a great friend. I learned pretty early on that it’s harder to do your job If you feel insecure, so investing in keeping my skin clear and healthy has always been a practice that is huge in my self-care. For me, sitting in the makeup chair feeling insecure is the WORST way to start the day, so I learned to be as proactive as I could.

I LOVE hiking, I hike daily. I love early morning or sunset, it’s something my soul needs. If I am anxious and I can get outside my whole day shifts. That’s a big one for me. A friend of mine created a magical Journaling format called MAGIC (see what I did there). It’s a five-step process that is a mini-meditation, in which I use headspace, to do quick yoga, affirmations, gratitude list, intentions and coffee. Love this morning ritual, it is something my soul needs and just reframes things for me.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Slow down. Be Kind. Watch the ripple effect”

One of the things I love about where I come from is the pace. It’s slow and easy. That doesn’t mean everyone is riding a tractor, so we can only go that speed although, that does happen. It’s the ease with the pace. Maybe it’s the heat or maybe its just the deep knowledge of deep breaths and taking in the space. In today’s world, we go and we hustle. So I try to slow down as much as I can.

“Be kind, watch the ripple effect,” is something my husband and I have constant convos about. I believe you can affect so many people with simple acts of kindness. Being kind and not needing anything in return. Just being kind because you want to be kind, can change those around you.

You are a person of huge influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?

Sexy center- let me explain. I would love to see it be the “cool thing” to see and hear the other person's side. Right now, we are so polarized and no one is listening to each other.

Debate is hard. When you break it down it seems it’s because we all are standing for what we believe and we truly feel the “other side” is too this or too that, so we can't hear them anymore. I’m not just talking politics, but life on every level. I hope we can bring about a movement where we hear each other and where we grow together. We should share ideas with each other. Find compromise, foster curiosity.

Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!

Um hi, hello Reese Witherspoon. She is a total b@d@$$.

Are you on social media? How can our readers follow you online?

I am. Please enjoy all the photos of my cats and my husband. You can find me

@ashleydulaney.

This was so informative, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!