Dialing in from her London home, Imogen Waterhouse is comfortable. Contented, even. It’s the week before Christmas and her latest streaming series, The Buccaneers, has just been renewed for a second season. She appears bright-eyed and bushy-tailed after a soirée with a circle glitzy enough to make any socialite north of the Thames’s eyes water. Dancing and karaoke-ing alongside the likes of Georgia May Jagger and sister Suki at the lavish Broadwick Soho Hotel, she shared the night with her 100k followers and (quickly) counting. Catching up via Zoom, Waterhouse dons chic loungewear with her hair tossed up in a simple baseball cap—she has that je ne sais quoi of rising starlets down pat. Stylish wardrobe? Check. Buzzy posse? Of course. Ineffable star quality? Confirmed. Hit series? Secured.

“Acting was always a part of my fabric. When I left school, I was playing with a few ideas of ‘Maybe I should do this, maybe I should do that’ but it always came back to some sort of performing,” says Waterhouse, best known as Immy. “I remember having a moment when I was like, ‘If I don’t try now, then I’m going to be angry at myself later in life. I may as well just give it a go and see what comes of it.’”

And it’s been going. Waterhouse’s star is on the rise with an expansive portfolio featuring standout performances in household-name dramas. After formally training as an actress at the Oxford School of Drama, Waterhouse landed a starring role in psycho-thriller Nocturnal Animals and CW series, The Outpost before landing The Buccaneers, Apple TV’s answer to the period romance rage.

Adapted from an unfinished Edith Wharton novel of the same name, Waterhouse plays the lively, popular, and all-American, Jinny St. George, who finds herself amongst the crinoline and class system of Victorian England in her search for love. Yet don’t be fooled by the “period” in its description—this isn’t Downton Abbey fare. It’s cotton candy visuals soundtracked by Lana Del Rey and Lucy Dacus. It’s corsets and lesbian lovers. It’s stiff upper lip Brits meet brash Americans—a classic trope we all eat up, Waterhouse included.

“It’s nice to see a fish out of water,” reflects Waterhouse. “The English society was really like this—keep it all in, don’t express yourself. Even today, English people are expected to be very humble whereas Americans are a lot more free to be proud of themselves. It’s two cultures clashing which always makes for an interesting dynamic.”

As she wades into the limelight, it’s clear Waterhouse is on the cusp of something much bigger. She speaks tentatively yet deliberately, carefully considering her words like she has her roles. “Delete that” and “Actually, never mind” pepper her speech. Her captivating cadence is punctuated by a laid-back yet reasonably posh accent. Equal parts attainable yet aspirational, Waterhouse feels just as much “girl next door” as “red carpet darling.” It’s that perfect formula for it-girldom that shows itself only once in a blue moon—maybe twice for lucky sisters.

This story appears in the pages of V147: now available for purchase!

Photography Tom Sloan

Fashion Brian Conway

Makeup Nicola Brittin (Saint Luke) using NARS

Hair Hiroki Kojima (Caren) using VIRTUE

Manicure Robbie Tomkins (LMC)

Production Lauren Sloan (Lalaland Production)

Digital technician Alex Gale

Photo assistants Seb McCluskey, Milan Rodriguez

Stylist assistants Keisha Adams, Nkechi Managwu

Makeup assistant Yolanda Dohr

Production assistant Jamie Alderman

Location Lock Studios