Meet Emily Bader, My Lady Jane’s Californian lead actress who slayed as the British queen in this Amazon Prime historical fantasy with Marvel’s Dominic Cooper and Edward Bluemel from Sex Education

Jul 26 , 2024

Edward Bluemel and Emily Bader play lovers in Amazon Prime’s historical fantasy drama, My Lady Jane. Photos: @primevideo, @emily_bader/Instagram

The Amazon Prime series puts a fictional spin on the story of Lady Jane Grey, who was put on the English and Irish throne but ruled for only 9 days, making way for King Henry VIII’s daughter, Queen Mary I

The show may have gone unexpectedly viral on TikTok with many viewers surprised that Bader is an American playing a British royal – but a nepo baby, the actress is not

In an industry full of privilege and nepo babies, it’s sometimes refreshing to see an emerging talent whose rise to fame relied solely upon their relentless ambition and hard work. American actress Emily Bader stands out as one such exception.

The My Lady Jane star told Rose & Ivy, a website dedicated to spotlighting the stories of women in entertainment, that her journey to success within the industry “has been pretty much like a staircase”. Indeed, a glance at her IMDB shows Bader first cut her teeth on shorts and straight-to-TV movies, with each step leading to her current title role in Amazon Prime’s My Lady Jane. She stars in the show alongside Marvel’s Dominic Cooper and Edward Bluemel from Netflix’s Sex Education.

Here’s what we know about the star of this eight-part episodic series on Lady Jane Grey, the 15-year-old queen for nine days who was placed on the throne after the death of Edward VI, the only legitimate male heir of King Henry VIII.

Emily Bader started from scratch in the film industry

Emily Bader comes from California, and her family has zero connections to Hollywood. Photo: @emily_bader/Instagram

The 27-year-old actress was born in Temecula, California, on November 8, 1997, to gymnastics coach Kathy Bader and David Bader, and her dream had always been to become an actress.

“When I would come home from school, I would watch like six movies until I got yelled at to do my homework,” she shared in her interview with Rose & Ivy. “I always wanted to be an actor, but my very rational parents were like, ‘Yes, absolutely, when you are 18.’”

She pursued her passion and studied acting at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, and graduated in 2016. She then made guest appearances on shows such as Game Shakers and Henry Danger, as well as nabbing roles in TV movies including House of the Witch (2017) and Stalked by a Reality Star (2018).

She’s a versatile actress

Emily Bader made sure to pursue acting opportunities on both stage and screen. Photo: @emily_bader/Instagram

Bader wasn’t only going after roles on screen though – she was also keen to tread the boards. She made her first theatrical debut at the Geffen Playhouse in Our Very Own Carlin McCullough in 2018, followed by bigger roles in darker films like Anonymous Killers (2020), Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin (2021) and Fresh Kill (2023).

All this was built on a foundation of going after every opportunity and being persistent and hopeful. “I had no connections in this business or any clue what I was doing. I got small jobs and then I got an agent and then I got slightly bigger jobs, and then you just move your way up the ladder,” she added in her Rose & Ivy interview. “I think you have to be stubborn enough not to give up, not have a backup plan, and something, at some point, will work out.”

She worked hard to earn her role on My Lady Jane

My Lady Jane is a fictional spin on Lady Jane Grey, England’s “nine days’ queen”. Photo: @emily_bader/Instagram