Ashlei Foushee stars as Kayla in the survival drama On Fire—which proved to be a very atypical role. The movie follows a family escaping from life-threatening wildfires, but Kayla isn’t physically involved in the danger. She’s the 911 dispatcher who answers the protagonists’ emergency call, meaning that Ashlei is reacting as nail-biting events happen.

What was it like for her to not be near the rest of the movie’s cast, led by Peter Facinelli (Nurse Jackie) and Fiona Dourif (The Blacklist)? Did she want to have a larger part in the action? Ashlei discussed the unique challenges of On Fire, while also giving me insight into what she’d like to see in her career and the pursuits she enjoys off-camera. Notably, she mentioned that the experience of making On Fire prompted her to have a greater interest in directing, and talked about how it’s become important for actors to not just act.

“I love telling stories,” Ashlee told me in our video interview. “I actually majored in screenwriting in college, so I’ve always loved that angle of creation as well as acting. But I think the way the industry is set up, you kind of have to be multi-faceted.”

Click below to watch my full interview with On Fire star Ashlei Foushee.

On Fire is now streaming on digital media platforms. Photo Credit: Tim Schaffer/Courtesy of ICON PR.

Article content is (c)2020-2026 Brittany Frederick and may not be excerpted or reproduced without express written permission by the author. Follow me on Twitter at @BFTVTwtr and on Instagram at @BFTVGram. For story pitches, contact me at tvbrittanyf@yahoo.com.