Poppy Delevingne opens up about ‘stigma’ models face in Hollywood

Poppy Delevingne is adamant models face a “huge stigma” when trying to pursue acting careers.
The British star started modelling in 2008 and went on to land major gigs for the likes of Burberry, Louis Vuitton and Chanel.
But in recent years, Poppy has focused her energies onto breaking into Hollywood, appearing as Clara Von Gluckfberg in 2017’s Kingsman: The Golden Circle and as Adrianna Colonna in period drama The Aspern Papers.
She has now shared how hard it is to make the transition from model to serious actress.
“I think there’s a huge stigma,” she told BBC News. “I think a lot of people think they go hand-in-hand, they go, ‘Oh you’re a model, you can just slip into the acting thing’, and you’re like, ‘It doesn’t really work like that.’ Directors, casting directors, producers, you’ve got to really prove yourself to them.”
Poppy explained that she has always been passionate about acting but her Hollywood plans had been “waylaid” when she found success as a model. And it wasn’t until she was in her late 20s that she decided it was time to follow in the footsteps of her younger sister Cara Delevingne and try her hand at performing.
“I’ve been modelling for a very long time, since I was 17, and the acting thing was always something I wanted to pursue, but it always got put on the back burner because the modelling took up a lot of time,” the 31-year-old said. “But when I was 28 I was like, enough is enough, this is not what makes me happy, and so I started pursuing the acting thing.”
Currently, Poppy is starring as Marie-Therese Walter in season two of National Geographic series Genius: Picasso, which delves into the life of artist Pablo Picasso. The show also stars Antonio Banderas, Clemence Poesy and Samantha Colley, and Poppy enjoyed working with such established actors.
“I was like a sponge, I was just sponging off everyone, I was always asking questions like, ‘How do I do that better?’ Which they were all more than happy to answer – they never made me feel like I was small and didn’t belong,” she smiled.