Her performance in that film was enough for the young actress to earn a small role in the series,Unforgettable, that same year. From there on out, Aufderheide has been a part of some major TV shows and popular movies, almost always in memorable parts. It seems that she’s skipped the part of her career thatmost successful child actorshave to wade through, wherein they spend years in unremarkable parts. Aufderheide got her big break in her first role and has not slowed down since, earning bigger parts over the years.
9Unforgettable (2011-2016)
Maya Rawlins-Murray (1 Episode, 2014)
Unforgettableis a CBS police procedural that follows a former Syracuse detective, Carrie Wells (Poppy Montogmery), a woman with hyperthymesia, which gives her the ability to visually remember everything. Trying to keep a low profile after the death of her sister, Carrie is dragged back to the NYPD by former boyfriend and partner, Al Burns (Dylan Walsh), who asks for her help solving his toughest cases.
It’s not a major part for Aufderheide, but the fact that, at age 10, she can come onto the set of a major network TV show and feel perfectly at home is an early testament to her confidence on screen.
Ashley Aufderheide plays Maya Rawlins-Murray in season 3, episode 10, “Fire and Ice”, a young girl involved in one of the crimes Carrie is attempting to solve. It’s not a major part for Aufderheide, but the fact that, at age 10, she can come onto the set of a major network TV show and feel perfectly at home is an early testament to her confidence on screen. It’s the only time Aufderheide has appeared in a one-episode role, and she still leaves an impression with reduced screentime.
High School Loveris a 2017 TV movie and the directorial debut of Jerell Rosales. In the film, 17-year-old Kelly Winters (Paulina Singer) falls in love with famous actor, Christian Booth (François Arnaud), who is nine years her senior. Her father, Rick Winters (James Franco), attempts to intervene in the relationship when he realizes it’s forming into a dangerous obsession. Ashley Aufderheide plays Kelly’s younger sister, Rachel.
It’s an extremely campy movie that occasionally stretches disbelief, but it’s filled with some solid performances, including a smaller one by Aufderheide. While the film has all the trademark camp expected of a Lifetime movie, the presence of Franco was a bit odd at the time, but in the 2020s, it isdownright unfortunate that James Francois in that particular role. Rachel only has a minor part in the story, but she works well alongside her co-stars andis much more competent than the child actors who often appear in similar Lifetime films.
Preacher
Cast
Preacher follows Jesse Custer, a Texas preacher, on his quest to confront the divine for abandoning humanity. Aided by Cassidy, a vampire, and Tulip, a gun-toting Texan, he wields the power of Genesis, a potent force born from an angel and a demon, to challenge celestial authority.
Based on the Vertigo comic book of the same name,Preacherpremiered in 2016 and lasted for four seasons. The show stars Dominic Cooper as Jesse Custer, an embittered and haunted preacher from Texas who discovers he has the ability to command others. With his newfound powers, he embarks on a quest to discover why he was gifted and fight the demonic creatures who are now coming after him. He’s joined by his volatile and trigger-happy girlfriend, Tulip O’Hare (Ruth Negga) on his quest.
Tulip’s backstory is altered in the show with Young Tulip growing up with Jesse in Annville, Texas before she’s sent to foster care. The two did not meet until Tulip was much older, in the comics.
Ashley Aufderheide joins the cast for two episodes, where she plays the younger version of Tulip. Just like the older version of the character, Young Tulip is a fearless individual. It’s not easy for any actor to perfectly channel the younger version of another actor’s take on a character, but at a young age, Aufderheide is able to do so admirably. She makes Tulip more innocent and sweet but doesn’t lose the edge that’s the essence of the character.
6The Slap (2015)
Melissa Apostolou (3 Episodes, 2015)
The Slaponly lasted for one season, but it was a surprising cultural touchstone with a lot of interest surrounding the topical and occasionally exaggerated show. Based on an Australian series of the same name, which was itself based on a book by Christos Tsiolkas,The Slapfollows the aftermath of a birthday party where Harry Apostolou (Zachary Quinto) slaps someone else’s misbehaving child, Hugo (Dylan Schombing).
Ashley Aufderheide appears as Melissa Apostolou, Harry’s niece and the daughter of Hector (Peter Sarsgaard) and Aisha (Thandiwe Newton). It’s not a major role for Melissa, but her presence in the story is crucial. The show follows the adults' reactions to the events, while knowingly avoiding what the children are thinking.Melissa’s confused and upset appearance throughout the show is important for detailing how the kids are being forgotten aboutin what becomes a fight about pride and ego.
Going in Style
Desperate to pay the bills and come through for their loved ones, three lifelong pals risk it all by embarking on a daring bid to knock off the very bank that absconded with their money.
InGoing in Style, Willie Davis (Morgan Freeman), Joe Harding (Michael Caine), and Albert Garner (Alan Arkin) are three elderly retirees who suddenly learn their pensions are canceled. Running out of options, the trio of legendary actors decide to rob a bank who has stolen their pensions in the first place. Ashley Aufderheide appears as Kanika Davis, Willie’s granddaughter who will be evicted from her home if Willie can’t come up with the rent.
It’s a talent-laden comedy filled with more heartwarming moments than real laughs, but the trio of actors at the center andthe chemistry between the ensemble keeps it from being too schmaltzy. Aufderheide holds her own in scenes opposite Freeman and plays the right kind of precocious child, which makes it clear why Willie is so set on providing for her.
4Infinitely Polar Bear (2014)
Faith Stuart
Ashley Aufderheide’s professional performance debut,Infinitely Polar Bear, follows Cameron Stuart (Mark Ruffalo), a Bostonian who was hospitalized after a psychotic break that also cost him his job. Cam’s wife Maggie (Zoe Saldaña) has to pick up the slack to help take care of their two young daughters, Amelia (Imogene Wolodarsky) and Faith (Aufderheide). While Maggie is at work, Cam learns how to take care of himself and his girls.
Imogene Wolodarsky is director Maya Forbes' daughter and the film is a semi-autobiographical adaptation of Forbes' life.
It’s a heartwarming, and sometimes harrowing, look at mental health and how it can reverberate through generations in a family. Faith is an incredibly raw role for an actress just beginning her career to play, but Aufderheide feels completely natural in the part.She has the right amounts of confusion, fear, love, and childish hopethat makes the audience constantly root for her and her sister.
3Four Kids And It (2020)
Samantha (Smash)
Four Kids and Itis an adaptation of the 2012 novelFour Children and Itby Jacqueline Wilson, which is itself based on E. Nesbit’s 1902 novel,Five Children and It. InFour Kids and It, British siblings Ros (Teddie-Rose Malleson-Allen) and Robbie (Billy Jenkins) spend the holiday in Cornwall with their father’s American girlfriend’s kids, Samantha “Smash” (Ashley Aufderheide) and Maudie (Ellie-Mae Siame). The quartet discover a mysterious creature, Psammead the Sand Fairy, who agrees to grant them one wish a day.
A charming revival of the classic children’s story,Four Children and Ithas plenty of whimsy and a brisk pace that makes for an enjoyable and easy watch. Smash is one of the older kids out of the group and, so, has a bit of a more mature role within the gang.Aufderheide portrays Smash as a character who knows she should be acting a bit older, but can’t help sliding back into a more youthful view of the world after meeting Psammead.
2Emergence (2019-2020)
Mia Evans (13 Episodes, 2019-2020)
Emergenceis an ABC mystery thriller set in Southold on Long Island. There, a police chief, Jo Evans (Allison Tolman), discovers a young girl, Piper (Alexa Swinton), who is the only one present at the site of a mysterious accident. It’s soon discovered that there’s more to Piper than meets the eye, and Jo delves into a year-spanning mystery that could reveal some truths about Southold and Jo herself. Ashley Aufderheide plays Mia Evans, Jo’s daughter.
While Jo and Piper are the main characters, Mia is critical as a bridge between the pair.
Initially apprehensive of the new girl in her home, Mia quickly bonds with Piper, and helps her new friend understand her powers. Though the show only lasted for one season, the series was celebrated for it’s array of powerful performances. While Jo and Piper are the main characters, Mia is critical as a bridge between the pair. She can understand where both mother and foster child are coming from and Aufderheide plays wise beyond her years.
That ’90s Show
That ’70s Show returns set two decades later with That ’90s Show, acting as a sequel but bringing back old cast favorites. Led by Red (Kurtwood Smith) and Kitty (Debra Jo Rupp) Forman, the new cast arrives as the next generation, with the daughter of Eric and Donna, Leia Forman, leading the charge. Spending the summer with her grandparents, Leia makes new friends and forges new bonds in Point Place, Wisconsin. That ’70s Show series regulars make cameos in the show to maintain that sense of familiarity, and the show adopts the conventions of the ’90s as expected. That ’90s Show first aired on Netflix with a total of ten episodes.
Ashley Aufderheide appears inthe cast ofThat ’90s Showas Gwen Runck, Nate Runck’s (Maxwell Acee Donovan) rebellious half-sister who always looks out for her goofy older half-brother despite her love of teasing him.That ’90s Showis a direct sequel to the classic sitcom,That ’70s Show, with many of the original actors from the series returning, including Debra Jo Rupp as Kitty Forman and Kurtwood Smith as Red Forman.
Gwen is one of the main cast members of the series and immediately strikes up a friendship with Leia Forman (Callie Haverda). The most outgoing of everyone in Point Place, Wisconsin, Gwen becomes the unofficial leader of the teenagers in the neighborhood. Aufderheide has the charisma and the comic sensibility to be one of the main leads of the series. She’s not obnoxious, even as the “rebellious” one andAshley Aufderheidereveals a complex, and possibly lonelier, core underneath Gwen’s bravado.
