Alyssa Sutherland (born 23 September 1982) is an Australian actress. She is best known for her role as Ellie in the fifth and sixth installments of the Evil Dead franchise.
Early life Sutherland was born in Brisbane. She is of Scottish descent, of Clan Sutherland.
Career
Modeling Sutherland's modelling career began when she won the 1997 annual Bonne Belle model search of Girlfriend, a teen magazine in Australia. Following her win, she signed a contract with Vogue Australia.
Sutherland has had an extensive runway, print and television modeling career, appearing in campaigns for Bulgari, Ralph Lauren, Garnier, Calvin Klein, Chanel, John Frieda, Kerastase, Hugo Boss and Abercrombie & Fitch.
Sutherland has appeared on the cover of magazines for Vogue Australia, Harper's Bazaar Singapore and Japan, Elle Germany, Australian Style, Glamour Italy and Black & White. She has also shot extensive editorial for Vogue (Germany, Australia, Italy, Greece and U.S.), Elle (Australia and U.S.), Marie-Claire (UK), Harper's Bazaar (Australia), Glamour Italy, I.D., Wallpaper* and The Face and Scene. She has worked with renowned fashion photographers, including Herb Ritts, Bruce Weber, Ellen von Unwerth and Steven Meisel.
In 2007, Sutherland became the newest Flake Girl, when Cadbury revived its iconic TV advertisements after a five-year hiatus. The advertisement shows her, in reverse time, eating a Flake bar in a convertible during a rain shower. She is one of several former Cadbury advert actors to speak out in favour of the "Keep Cadbury British" campaign in opposition to the sale of Cadbury to a non-British owner.
Since transitioning away from modeling, Sutherland has expressed guilt about having contributed to the "unrealistic standards" of beauty set by the fashion-industry and has been critical of its strict and damaging size-requirements.
Acting Sutherland's acting career began with a small role in The Devil Wears Prada, alongside Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, in 2006. That same year, she played Shira, a model, in Day on Fire with Olympia Dukakis. She next played the role of Claire in 2009 horror film Don’t Look Up. She also had a small part in 2012 crime drama film Arbitrage, starring Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon.
Sutherland landed the role of Princess Aslaug, second wife of Ragnar Lothbrok (played by Travis Fimmel) in historic drama series Vikings. She joined the cast from the final episode of the first season, in 2013, and went on to spend four seasons on the show.
In 2017, Sutherland played the lead role of Eve Copeland in The Mist, a miniseries adaptation of Stephen King’s sci-fi horror 1985 novella of the same name. The following year, she played Hedy Lamarr in an episode of NBC sci-fi drama series Timeless. She then starred in 2019 Australian survival horror/thriller Blood Vessel, which was filmed in Melbourne. It premiered on closing night at 2019 FilmQuest in Provo, Utah, where Sutherland won the award for Best Supporting Actress.
Sutherland returned to Australia again to star in Goalpost Pictures’ gold rush drama miniseries New Gold Mountain, playing the role of Belle Roberts, a widow overcoming the trauma of an abusive marriage in 1850s Australia. The series was filmed at Sovereign Hill, outside Melbourne and premiered on SBS on 13 October 2021.
In May 2021, Sutherland was cast in the 2023 horror film Evil Dead Rise as Ellie Bixler, the possessed Deadite later known as 'The Marauder'. In 2026, she reprised her role as Ellie in Evil Dead Burn, with a cameo appearance seeing her character revived in the post-credits scene.
Personal life On 5 February 2012, Sutherland married her longtime boyfriend Laurence Shanet at Natai Beach, in Thailand. The couple divorced in November 2013.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes Ref2006The Devil Wears Prada ClackerDay on Fire Shira 2009 Don't Look Up Claire 2012 Arbitrage Jeffrey's Receptionist 2019 Blood Vessel Jane Prescott 2023 Evil Dead Rise Ellie 'Elle' Bixler The Mental State Dana Cady 2026 Evil Dead Burn Ellie 'Elle' Bixler Cameo appearance
Television Year Title Role Notes Ref 2008 New Amsterdam Alice Episode: "Legacy" Huge Izzy Unsold TV pilot 2011, 2019 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Kate Episode: "Bang" Sadie Parker Episode: "Plastic" 2013–2016 Vikings Aslaug Main role; 35 episodes (seasons 1–4) 2015 Australia's Next Top Model Herself Episode: "Finale" 2017 The Mist Eve Copeland Main role; 10 episodes 2018 Timeless Hedy Lamarr Episode: "Hollywoodland" 2021 New Gold Mountain Belle Roberts Miniseries; 4 episodes
Awards Year Work Award Category Result Ref 2019 Blood Vessel FilmQuest Best Supporting Actress
References
External links
Cadbury Flake "Summer Rain" (2007)