Newest SI Swimsuit Rookie Penny Lane Talks ‘Gratitude’ Over Photoshoot in Portugal

The model, actress and entrepreneur will appear in the 60th anniversary issue in May.

Penny Lane.Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

While on location for her 2024 rookie photoshoot with Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, model and actress Penny Lane could hardly wrap her head around her good fortune. Though the Cheshire, England, native has been modeling since the age of 16, she’d always hoped to be part of the SI Swimsuit Issue—a dream that will come true with the publication of May’s 60th anniversary edition.

“We are thrilled to welcome Penny Lane to the SI Swimsuit family as a rookie! Beyond her undeniable beauty, what truly captivated us was her authenticity,” editor in chief MJ Day says. “She uses her own personal journey within the modeling industry to advocate for others, passionately championing inclusivity. We are so excited to see what she does next!”

Lane, one of seven Swim Search co-winners in 2023, recently traveled to Porto and the North, Portugal, for her brand debut to work with photographer Ben Watts. We took the opportunity to catch up with the 29-year-old about the open casting call process, her rookie experience, impressive career path and more.

Penny Lane was photographed by Ben Watts in Portugal. Top by COSTAIIA. Bottoms by Navy Ray. 

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

“Just a beautiful all-around experience”

Lane, a certified holistic health coach, sailed through to the Swim Search’s top 12 contestants before being declared one of the final seven women in the 2023 open casting call. Along with her six fellow finalists, Lane traveled to South Florida in July for Miami Swim Week, where she walked the SI Swimsuit runway show at the W South Beach.

Shortly thereafter, Lane and the six other women—Achieng Agutu, Nina Cash, Sharina Gutierrez, Brittney Nicole, Jena Sims and Berkleigh Wright—learned they had all been named co-winners of the open casting call and would be rookies in the 2024 SI Swimsuit Issue. The unprecedented results were relayed to the women on a Zoom call with Day, and Lane says the moment still hasn’t sunk in yet.

“I’m still expecting a call to say, ‘Just joking, it’s not actually you. It’s not happening!’” Lane quipped while on location in the southern European country. “I was honestly in tears after I got off the phone. I called my mom straight away. You know, when I was 16, I said to her, ‘I’m going to do that one day.’ And she was like, ‘You’re crazy, Penny.’ And I was like, ‘I’m going to show you. I’m going to do it.’ And my mom just burst out in tears. She’s like, ‘I can’t believe you actually did it.’ And I was like, ‘I know,’ so it was just a beautiful all-around experience. It was so nice.”

Penny Lane was photographed by Ben Watts in Portugal. Top by COSTAIIA. Bottoms by Navy Ray. 

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

She says she is “gratified, euphoric and proud” to call herself an SI Swimsuit rookie this year, and hopes that her story will serve as an inspiration for other women who have faced challenges with their mental health and overall well-being like she has.

“Beyond the surface beauty in the images [resulting from her rookie feature], I want viewers to recognize the journey behind them,” Lane explains. “I want women to understand that achieving confidence and balance took time and patience for me. My path involved deep self-discovery, and I aim to share the most significant discovery of my life so far. I hope that, by witnessing my journey, women will realize that striving to be their happiest and most balanced selves will, in turn, bring out the most beautiful version of themselves. It’s about embracing a holistic approach to well-being that goes beyond the surface, fostering inner strength and radiance.”

“I’m just filled with gratitude”

Penny Lane was photographed by Ben Watts in Portugal. Top by COSTAIIA. Bottoms by Navy Ray. 

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

While posing for her SI Swimsuit photoshoot in Porto and the North, Portugal, Lane had the opportunity to show off the skills she’s honed in front of the camera through years of hard work in the industry. Lane has worked with notable brands like Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Burberry, Balmain, Charlotte Tilbury, SKIMS and Intimissimi.

“It’s been, honestly, this whole experience up until this point, I haven’t believed it,” Lane says of her work with SI Swimsuit. “It still feels like it’s sinking in today. And the first shot that we got, I think I was like, ‘Oh wow, this is actually real, it’s happening and I’ve actually done it.’ It’s a really amazing experience to feel like I’ve come throughout this whole journey to this point now. It’s been 10 years [in the making], and it’s been incredible, like an amazing journey up to this point, but it means so much to me. So it just feels like I’m just filled with gratitude.”

She has nothing but complimentary things to say about working with Watts and the rest of the SI Swimsuit team.

Penny Lane was photographed by Ben Watts in Portugal. Top by COSTAIIA. Bottoms by Navy Ray. 

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

“Shooting with Ben and his team was a dream!” Lane recalls. “I have had a lot of experience in front of the camera so it’s magic when I get to work with incredible professionals like Ben. He brought so much fun to the shoot ... It felt like it was just a big group of good friends hanging out and capturing incredible moments together.”

In addition to modeling, Lane is also an actor. Her big break came in the 2017 Zack Snyder film Justice League, in which she played character Lex Luthor’s bodyguard. 

“That was an amazing experience,” Lane says of the action-packed movie. “We did so much training for that and I just had the best time. It was so fun. So anything like that, to be honest, is kind of like a dream [role].”

Lane, who can also be spotted in Drake’s music video for the 2022 song “Falling Back,” is coy about her forthcoming acting work but says, “I’ve got a few exciting secret things coming up.”

“We decided to try and ... make a company”

Penny Lane was photographed by Ben Watts in Portugal. Top by COSTAIIA. Bottoms by Navy Ray. 

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Outside of her modeling pursuits, Lane loves ’90s grunge music, enjoys baking and eats a croissant every single day (of the latter, she says Aux Merveilleux de Fred in New York’s West Village has the most authentic take on the French pastry in the States). She’s also a self-described “racketista” who turned her love for all racket sports into an opportunity for entrepreneurship.

“First of all, tennis, I absolutely love. It’s just such a beautiful sport. Padel is amazing because it’s really fun, it’s really quick and easy ... and then pickleball is just [for] anyone. Literally anyone can play, and it’s just fun,” she says of her favorite hobbies.

Lane’s love of padel, a racket sport that originated in Acapulco, Mexico, in 1969, led her to develop a passion project with friend and photographer Grace Adèle. Today, the two are cofounders of Pleasure Padel Club, a brand that produces retro-inspired athleisure and creates community for lovers of the sport. 

“I went to [a tennis tournament] in Acapulco, and I realized that padel was such a huge thing there, and so I was obsessed with it,” Lane explains. “Me and my friend were playing every day, and we were like, ‘When we get back to L.A., we need to start playing it.’ And so we go to L.A., and nothing’s happening. ... And so we’re like, ‘There's something in this, it’s so popular everywhere.’ And we love the tennis aesthetic. My friend, she's a photographer. I love beautiful imagery, and so we decided to try and make padel a bit more cool and have that kind of cool, chic aesthetic to it and make a company.”

With so many projects under her belt at the moment, there’s one thing Lane would tell her younger self about her journey thus far that we can all stand to benefit from.

“I would say be kind to her,” Lane offers. ”I would say speak to her as if you were talking to your friend.”

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