Get to Know Ali Skovbye, the Talented Actress Behind Firefly Lane's Young Tully

Published on Feb 9, 2021 at 9:00 PM

Image Source: Netflix

If you've had the chance to binge Netflix's Firefly Lane, in between digging up theories about its various cliffhangers, falling in love with the sweet friendship, and relishing in its nostalgic soundtrack, it's nearly impossible not to notice the impressive performances by the teen actresses who star as young Tully and Kate. Canadian actress Ali Skovbye, who plays the '70s counterpart to Katherine Heigl's Tully Hart in the new drama, blew me away with her vulnerable acting and powerful chemistry with Kate, who is played by both Roan Curtis and Sarah Chalke. You may already be familiar with current-day Tully and Kate, aka Katherine and Sarah, but the younger stars have flown relatively under the radar amidst their success. Get to know Ali,with these six interesting facts ahead.

She's Best Friends With Costar Roan Curtis in Real Life

While Ali and Roan first met on the set of Firefly Lane, they quickly became best friends during filming and now make occasional appearances on each other's Instagrams, where they often hype each other up in the sweetest way. "I think that we're super, super close now, and so it made doing all [those dramatic scenes] really easy as we were becoming friends as well in real life," Ali told Decider in a recent interview.

Roan also showed her love for Ali in an Instagram post promoting the show back in January: "It's pretty rad that over the last 5 months, while working on a show about two best friends, she's become one of my best friends (life imitating art?)," she wrote. "I love her a lot and wouldn't have wanted to be the Kate to anyone else's Tully."

She's Been in Multiple Hallmark Productions

Since making her big screen debut at five years old in the 2009 film Personal Effects with Ashton Kutcher and Michelle Pfeiffer, the young talent has gone on to participate in numerous projects, including roles in Supernatural, Smallville, and Once Upon a Time.

While her acting gigs have been quite diverse, she's most recognized for starring in various Hallmark movies and TV series, including her breakout role as Becky in Hallmark's When Calls the Heart.

Her Sister Is Also an Actress

You may recognize Ali's sister, Tiera Skovbye as Polly Cooper from Riverdale. Tiera, who is seven years older, was actually the one who inspired Ali to pursue acting as a young child. In an interview with Hollywood North Magazine, Ali shared that while she was a very shy kid who initially wasn't interested in the acting world, she gave it a shot because she "wanted to be just like [her] older sister."

The duo even played sisters on screen in the 2017 Lifetime movie Secrets of My Stepdaughter. Ali and Tiera also both appeared in Once Upon a Time, though at different times.

She Dyed Her Hair For Firefly Lane

Though Young Tully has dark brown hair in the series, Ali is originally a blonde in real life. "That time I dyed my hair brown and filmed a show that I'm really really proud of," she wrote in an Instagram sharing the Firefly Lane trailer.

She Recently Graduated High School

Despite her busy acting schedule, Ali managed to find time to continue her education and complete high school. In June 2020, the 18-year-old graduated from King George Secondary School in Vancouver. She also attended her high school prom the same month.

She's Drawn to Complex Characters

The actress loves the challenge of playing complicated characters like Tully Hart. "Ever since I started acting, I skipped the whole Barbie/commercial phase and went straight to the darker stuff," she told Hollywood North Magazine. "I've always been drawn to complex characters that have a lot of different aspects that you can work with. It's a lot more fun when you're open to different things."