Holly Shervey

Holly Melissa Shervey (born 18 December 1989), is a television and film actress and writer. She is an Australian-born New Zealander.

Shervey has acted in numerous prime-time local and international screen productions including Amazon Prime's American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story and TVNZ's Shortland Street, and has most recently appeared in the feature film, The Tank.

Shervey has also written and starred in over 70 episodes of her own series, Auckward Love and Millennial Jenny.

Shervey was born in the New South Wales town of Cooma, Australia. She grew up in Queenstown, New Zealand, and attended Wakatipu High School. Shervey acted in film and theatre productions in Queenstown before moving to Auckland to attend the performing arts school, The Actors Program, in 2012.

Film and television

After graduating from The Actors Program, Shervey was cast in the New Zealand series Nothing Trivial in 2013. In 2015, she created and starred in Auckward Love, and in 2016 acted in American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story, playing a real-life former bunny, Teddy Howard.

Shervey has played Zoe Carlson on the long-running New Zealand TV series Shortland Street since 2018. Her character dealt with several hard-hitting storylines, including themes around sexual assault. Shervey has also featured in New Zealand shows Kiwi, Head High, and Mean Mums, as well as the international feature film, The Tank, set for cinematic release in 2023.

Writing

In 2015, Shervey began her writing career by creating the award-winning series Auckward Love. The series won numerous awards in international film festivals and continued for three seasons on New Zealand’s TVNZ Plus. Shervey then went on to write and star in over fifty episodes of Millennial Jenny, which too received several local and international award nominations.

Personal life

Shervey is engaged to New Zealand actor, Emmett Skilton. Skilton is a director and actor in both Auckward Love and Millennial Jenny.

Film

• The Tank (2023) as Linda
• Prequel 87' (2018) as Jean
• Kiwi (2018) as Kelly
• Ripple (2017) as Kerry-Anne

Television

• Shortland Street (2018–present) as Zoe Carlson
• Head High (2021) as Frankie
• Mean Mums (2019–2020) as Tessa
• Auckward Love (2015–2018) Alice
• American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story (2017) as Teddy Howard
• Nothing Trivial (2014)

Web

• Perfect People (2022) as Lilian
• Millennial Jenny (2018–present) as Jenny

Theatre

• Royals Of Kihikihi (2014) as Violet
• Crunchy Silk (2014) as Astrid
• Thirteen (2012) as Sarah

• Best Acting Ensemble: Narrative - Millenial Jenny (joint winner) at New Zealand Webfest 2022
• Best Web Series – Lake View International Film Festival 2022
• Best Actress – Bridgefest 2021
• Best Writer – NZ Webfest 2021
• Best Show – NZ Webfest 2020
• Best Acting Ensemble – NZ Webfest 2020
• Alumni Award – NZ Webfest 2020
• Best Show – NZ Webfest 2019
• Best Actress – NZ Webfest 2017
• Best Screenplay for an International Web-series – Melbourne Webfeet 2016