Simone Garcia Johnson on Her Golden Globe Ambassadorship
Simone Garcia Johnson is ready for her Hollywood entry. On Sunday, the 16-year-old daughter of Dany Garcia and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will make her debut as 2018 Golden Globe Ambassador, a title formerly known as Mr. or Miss Golden Globe.
Last year’s Miss Golden Globes were Sylvester Stallone’s three daughters Sophia, Sistine and Scarlet. The year prior, Jamie Foxx’s daughter Corinne was named. Johnson, a high school student and IMG model, says she found out about her appointment from her parents on her 16th birthday.
“I didn’t know that it was going to be Golden Globe Ambassador,” she says. “When I found that out, it made it so much more surreal to me and I feel blessed. I’m really happy that the Hollywood Foreign Press chose to make this change especially with the world that we live in now. It promotes equality and it’s more inclusive and those are things that I feel passionately about.”
One of Johnson’s first orders of business as Golden Globe Ambassador was to partner with a charity. She chose GlobalGirl Media, an organization founded by a group of female filmmakers and journalists that gives young women the tools they need to become digital journalists. But even before the GlobalGirl partnership, Johnson had used her platform — nearly 250,000 Instagram followers — to bring attention to social and political issues.
In September 2016, she shared a lengthy #BlackLivesMatter post. Two months ago, she posted a photo of a T-shirt that reads, “If fertilized eggs are ‘people’ & refugees aren’t, we have a problem.” A couple of days ago, she expressed her support of Time’s Up, a movement launched this week by women in Hollywood in light of the continuous flood of allegations against powerful men in all industries.
On. Dec. 12, WWD shot Johnson at a pre-Globes fitting during which she tried on three colorful gown options. Shortly after, news broke of the all-black dress code and Johnson decided to stand in solidarity with the Time’s Up supporters. She’s been to the Golden Globes before — she accompanied her father in 2015 — and this time around the evening will undoubtedly hold even more meaning.
“I’m excited and I’m also a little bit nervous. I can’t wait for the day and I can’t wait for the show and I think it’s going to be really exciting,” she says. “I really want to see how hard everyone has worked on these films. I’m just excited to see the outcome and for the show in general.” The one person she’d love to meet that night is Hayley Atwell — “She’s my favorite actress and I admire her work so much.” And of course, she’ll be walking the carpet with her father.
“My dad has just told me to live in the moment and to be present and enjoy the whole experience,” she says. “I’m really keeping that in the back of my mind throughout this entire process.”
What will the young model do post-Globes? Get back into the groove of high school, it seems. “I’m not sure right now,” she says of her future plans. “That’s another reason why I’m thankful for this opportunity because I feel like it’s gonna be a stepping stone for whatever I end up choosing to do in life. I’m only 16 right now and I’m really just trying to enjoy this experience right now being the first Golden Globe Ambassador.”
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