Ashley Lee

Staff Writer

Ashley Lee is a staff reporter at the Los Angeles Times, where she writes about theater, movies, television and the bustling intersection of the stage and the screen. An alum of the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Critics Institute and Poynter’s Power of Diverse Voices, she leads workshops on arts journalism at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. She was previously a New York-based editor at the Hollywood Reporter and has written for the Washington Post, Backstage and American Theatre, among others. She is currently working remotely alongside her dog, Oliver.

Latest From This Author

Movies

John Williams makes Oscars history as oldest nominee

At 90 years old, the ‘Fabelmans’ composer set a new record as the awards’ oldest nominee in any category.
Television

‘Glee’ docuseries explores what — or who — caused Cory Monteith’s overdose

The three-part series, premiering Monday, considers Monteith’s death and other controversies and tragedies that have shaped the musical comedy’s legacy.
Television

No, that Golden Globes pianist was not playing over the speeches

Chloe Flower defended herself online in the middle of the ceremony, after collecting misdirected blame for interrupting the night’s winners.
Movies

Inside the biggest change Netflix made to ‘Matilda the Musical’

‘The best school in all the land’ comes to life in the film adaptation of the hit musical, thanks to a moving duet between Matilda and Miss Honey.
Movies

The ‘cathartic release’ of ‘The Whale’ explained by the play’s actors and directors

Playwright Samuel D. Hunter and the artists who staged “The Whale” share insights on the unique piece that inspired Darren Aronofsky’s movie.
Television

Meet Joshua Henry, the hunky Gaston of ABC’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ special

The Broadway actor explains how he channeled Gaston in the gym to bulk up for his role as ‘Beauty and the Beast’s’ resident himbo.
Movies

Why Emma Thompson’s Trunchbull is genuinely unsettling in Netflix’s ‘Matilda’

Roald Dahl’s terrifying headmistress gets a multifaceted portrayal by Emma Thompson in the Netflix movie-musical.
Entertainment & Arts

Broadway’s trailblazing ‘KPOP’ musical is abruptly closing. What went wrong?

The creative team behind the ambitious spectacle discuss its sudden end and potential future: ‘We never got a fair chance.’
Television

Behind the scenes of Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell’s chaotic ‘Spirited’ tap dance

How did that madcap song and dance ‘Good Afternoon’ come together in Apple TV+'s ‘Spirited’? A lot of tap-dancing takes for stars Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell, for one.
Movies

How a clever new spin on ‘A Christmas Carol’ takes on a Twitter Scrooge

Apple’s ‘Spirited’ turns the oft-told tale on its head by making its miser a media manipulator, and viewing him through the perspective of the ghosts.