It’s been a glowing, slaying, spotlight-stealing and, I would say, all-round fabulous week for Simone Ashley, star of Bridgerton and Leicester Square, where she was photographed on Monday for the London premiere of F1 despite being cut from the film.
I say cut, but “cut” no longer cuts it. In today’s hyperbolic world, the British actor has had her scenes “brutally cut” by the film’s director, prompting such measured social-media responses as “f**k you, Joseph Kosinski”.
Technically, there’s still a trace of Ashley in F1. Featuring briefly – extremely briefly – in the time-honoured role of “Self”, she is one of several celebrities shown arriving at a grand prix to see if Sonny (played by Brad Pitt) can manage to finish a single race without smashing up his car.
But let’s just say this trace makes Isla Fisher’s jarringly fleeting moment in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy – described by its director, Michael Morris, as an “elevated cameo for fun” – seem like a stamina-testing tour de force.
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The backlash, led by Ashley fans already convinced she has not been given the same treatment as other season leads in Bridgerton, the Netflix drama, has centred on the claim that she is a victim of Hollywood’s fondness for marginalising actors of colour, with this suspicion of window-dressing only furthered by her participation in the film’s promotion.
Blink and you will miss Ashley in F1. At the F1 premiere there was no chance of that. She shone, literally, in a gold peplum dress accessorised with an invisible yet unmistakable sign that read “Cast me”.
To some this elevated cameo outside Cineworld on Leicester Square was a case of the actor soldiering on amid a clear case of humiliation. Her appearance was proof of her grace, class and professionalism in the face of obvious mistreatment. Not everyone would have the capacity to be so brave in Balmain couture.
To others this was more a case of Ashley being clever and unfazed enough to realise that she could transcend the tiny little technicality of not being in the film and reap the rewards of the red carpet. Her Instagram post the morning after appeared to confirm this, with every make-up artist, stylist and photographer involved in her look credited alongside a selection of images and video in which she was the sole star.
In this post, inevitably reported as the actor “breaking her silence”, Ashley described it as “a joy to reunite with the cast and crew” and celebrate the film in her hometown, adding that she “couldn’t have been prouder watching everyone shine on screen and on the carpet, all while wearing my couture @balmain gown that made me feel just as radiant”.
There was more effusing, then an instruction to fans to “Go see this movie!” – which they may well do, if only as a hate-watch.
While a ‘very, very small role’ in F1 would have been nice, being cut from the film and making do with being ‘just as radiant’ on the red carpet is not a huge disaster, either
Speaking of watches, and in something of a clue as to why she might have shown up, the Swiss luxury watch brand IWC Schaffhausen was tagged and prominently sported on her wrist. Indeed, IWC also gets more screen time than Ashley in the film.
But, from her point of view, was her excision really that huge a career blow?
Pushing back on the ever-so-slightly gleeful tone to the coverage of her axing, fans of nuance have been valiantly pointing out that the ditching of entire storylines is a normal part of film-making and is not necessarily, or even usually, a verdict on the actor’s performance.
Kosinski pointed out that “you have to shoot more than you can use” and that Ashley’s original “very, very small role” as a “mystery girl” whom Joshua, the driver played by Damson Idris, spies at races, was one of “two or three” storylines that didn’t make the final edit.
Certainly, when you’re watching F1, which has a runtime of two hours and 35 minutes, you don’t think, “What this film needs is a subplot in which the young hotshot has a crush on a random woman in the crowd.”
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It’s a hammy slab of dumb entertainment, a fantasy story sustained by bromance, high-speed spins and bland dialogue in which a key element of the tension derives from whether Joshua’s mother will come around to the idea that the old rebel Sonny isn’t such a bad guy.
So while a “very, very small role” in F1 would have been nice, being cut from the film and making do with being “just as radiant” on the red carpet is not a huge disaster, either – not when the relatable disappointment endears you to new fans and helps you claim the much more satisfying role of heroine of the week.
After the premiere, Ashley did a costume change and was snapped at the after-party, where, in the immortal words of the Daily Mail, she put on a “leggy display”. Now that’s stardom. She’ll be back, and next time her role will be too big to cut.
