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Anna Popplewell

Anna Popplewell has built a career across film, television, theatre and audio, moving between period drama, fantasy and horror without becoming tied to a single kind of role. Born in London on 16 December 1988, she began taking classes at the Allsorts Drama School when she was six and made her professional acting debut in the 1998 television production Frenchman’s Creek. Her film debut followed in Mansfield Park in 1999, with supporting roles in The Little Vampire and Girl with a Pearl Earring helping to establish her early screen career. Her first major role arrived when she played Susan Pevensie in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Popplewell brought a composed, practical presence to Susan, then returned for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian and made a cameo in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Alongside acting, Popplewell studied English at Magdalen College, Oxford. Her later television work broadened her range: she played Chyler Silva in the live-action miniseries Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn in 2012, then appeared as Lola, a friend of Mary, Queen of Scots, in the CW period drama Reign from 2013 to 2016. Popplewell returned to feature films in 2023 as Kate in The Nun II. Her performance brought a welcome warmth to the horror sequel, with IndieWire describing her as “especially warm” and “easy-to-root-for.” That same year, she made her stage debut in the title role of Hedda Gabler, adding theatre to a career already spread across several forms. Her voice has also become a substantial part of her work. Since 2018, Popplewell has narrated audiobooks including Dear Mrs. Bird, Jane Eyre and Queen of Coin and Whispers. It is a fitting extension of a career shaped by clear, controlled performances and a willingness to move between very different storytelling worlds.