Rachael Taylor
Taylor at the AACTA Awards in 2012
Born (1984-07-11) 11 July 1984
Launceston, Tasmania, Australia
Occupation(s)Actress, model
Years active2000–present
PartnerMike Piscitelli

Rachael May Taylor (born 11 July 1984) is an Australian actress and model. Her first lead role was in the Australian television series headLand (2005–2006). She then made the transition to Hollywood, appearing in films including Man-Thing (2005), See No Evil (2006), Transformers (2007), Bottle Shock (2008), Cedar Boys (2009), Splinterheads (2009), Shutter (2008), Red Dog (2011), The Darkest Hour (2011) and Any Questions for Ben? (2012).

She has also starred as Dr. Lucy Fields on Grey's Anatomy, as one of the Angels on the short-lived reboot Charlie's Angels (both 2011), as the main character on the ABC show 666 Park Avenue (2012–2013), and in the NBC action/thriller series Crisis (2014).

She starred in the Netflix exclusive Marvel Cinematic Universe streaming superhero television shows Jessica Jones (2015–2019), Luke Cage (2016), and The Defenders (2017) as Trish Walker.

Early life

Taylor was born in Launceston, Tasmania, the daughter of Christine and Nigel Taylor.[1] She attended Riverside High School and Trevallyn Primary School. Taylor had wanted to be an actress since she was a child, performing in many school plays. Taylor's childhood was also filled with modelling and beauty pageants before she ventured into acting. She graduated from Riverside High School in 2000.[2]

Career

Taylor modelled for Skye-Jilly International and competed successfully in the state finals of Miss Teen Tasmania 1998. She has appeared in a number of American productions – such as television movies about Natalie Wood and the making of Dynasty (where she played Catherine Oxenberg),[3] and the horror movies Man-thing and See No Evil.

Taylor played Sasha Forbes on the short-lived Australian drama series headLand. On 3 April 2006, she was nominated for a Logie Award for Most Popular New Female Talent for her role on headLand.

Taylor at the Transformers premiere in Sydney (2007)

Her most prominent role to date was as Maggie Madsen, a signals analyst, in the 2007 Transformers, where she appeared alongside Megan Fox and Shia LaBeouf. Taylor confirmed that she would not be returning for the Transformers sequel.[4] In 2008, Taylor scored a starring role in the US horror-thriller Shutter, a remake of the 2004 Thai film of the same name opposite Joshua Jackson.[5] Despite mixed reviews, the film was a box-office success.[6]

In 2009, she completed the Australian feature Cedar Boys and starred in the comedy Splinterheads. In 2010, she starred alongside Alex Dimitriades in the Australian romantic drama Summer Coda.[7] She has also signed to the HBO comedy series Washingtonienne and Melt, an Australian production. Taylor began a recurring role on Grey's Anatomy as Dr. Lucy Fields, an obstetrician and maternal-fetal fellow.[8][9][10]

In 2011, Taylor joined the cast of the short-lived remake of the television series Charlie's Angels.[11][12] Also in 2011, she had a major role in the film Red Dog and starred in the Russian science-fiction thriller film The Darkest Hour, directed by filmmaker Chris Gorak.[13]

Taylor had a key supporting role in the 2012 Australian comedy Any Questions for Ben?, created by Working Dog Productions.[14] Although the film performed disappointingly at the box-office and received lukewarm reviews, Taylor was praised for her role. Leigh Paatsch in the Herald-Sun wrote "Taylor exudes a warmth and assurance (in her performance). It is a shame she is missing in action for lengthy spells in the picture."[15]

From 2012 to 2013, Taylor starred in the new drama 666 Park Avenue. She was next cast in the 2014 NBC series Crisis, which ran for one season.[16] In 2015, Taylor starred in Jessica Jones as the titular character's best friend Trish Walker. She would go on to reprise the role in a voiceover cameo in Luke Cage in 2016, in The Defenders in 2017, a second season of Jessica Jones in 2018, and the series's final season in 2019.[17]

In 2014, Taylor played a supporting role in the thriller The Loft, a remake of the 2008 original, alongside fellow Australian Isabel Lucas. In 2016, Taylor portrayed the character Rachel Hill in Gold. In 2018, Taylor appeared in Ladies in Black, an Australian comedy-drama.

In 2019, Taylor appeared in Finding Steve McQueen as Molly Murphy, where she starred alongside Travis Fimmel, Forest Whitaker, and William Fichtner.

In March 2023, it was rumoured Taylor would be joining Paul Thomas Anderson's next currently untitled film. This marks her first acting role in 4 years. She also returned to her Instagram having not updated again in 4 years.[18]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2005 Man-Thing Teri Elizabeth Richards
2006 See No Evil Zoe Warner
2007 Transformers Maggie Madsen
2008 Shutter Jane
2008 Bottle Shock Sam Fulton
2008 Deception Woman in Hallway
2009 Cedar Boys Amie
2009 Splinterheads Galaxy
2009 Ghost Machine Jess
2010 Providence Park Bicycle Girl Short film
2010 Summer Coda Heidi
2011 Red Dog Nancy Grey
2011 The Darkest Hour Anne
2012 Any Questions for Ben? Alex
2014 The Loft Anne Morris
2016 ARQ Hannah
2016 Gold Rachel Hill
2016 Wig Shop Lili Short film
2018 White Orchid Jessica
2018 Ladies in Black Fay
2019 Finding Steve McQueen Molly Murphy

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2004 The Mystery of Natalie Wood Maryann Marinkovich TV film
2005 Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure Catherine Oxenberg TV film
2005 Hercules Nemean Lion / Sphinx TV miniseries
2005 McLeod's Daughters Natalie Louise Brown Episode: "Old Flames"
2005–2006 headLand Sasha Forbes Main role
2009 Washingtonienne Jackie Unsold TV pilot
2011 Grey's Anatomy Dr. Lucy Fields Recurring role, 8 episodes
2011 Charlie's Angels Abigail "Abby" Simpson Main role
2012–2013 666 Park Avenue Jane Van Veen Main role
2014 Crisis Agent Susie Dunn Main role
2015–2019 Jessica Jones Patricia "Trish" Walker Main role
2016 Luke Cage Episode: "Suckas Need Bodyguards"
Voiceover cameo
2017 The Defenders Mini-series
Main role, 4 episodes
2017 House of Bond Diana Bliss TV miniseries

References

  1. ↑ Hills, Brenden (10 September 2010). "We're shattered by Rachael's bashing, say Nigel and Christine Taylor". The Sunday Telegraph. Retrieved 28 January 2011.
  2. ↑ "Our Hollywood transformation". The Mercury. 29 April 2007. Archived from the original on 16 May 2007. Retrieved 29 April 2007.
  3. ↑ "Dynasty: Dynasty: Behind the Scenes (Seite 1 von 34)". Der-Denver-Clan. Archived from the original on 10 July 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2009.
  4. ↑ Vineyard, Jennifer (19 August 2008). "Rachel Taylor ... Not In 'Transformers 2,' And Proud Of It". MTV. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
  5. ↑ Biodrowski, Steve (19 March 2008). "Interview: Rachael Taylor on Shutter". Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  6. ↑ Kasch, Andrew (21 March 2008). "Shutter (2008)". Archived from the original on 11 June 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  7. ↑ Paatsch, Leigh (21 October 2010). "Summer Coda movie review". Herald Sun. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  8. ↑ Miska, Brad (14 May 2010). "Transformers Hottie Joins Alien Invasion at The Darkest Hour". Bloody Disgusting.
  9. ↑ "Transformers Actress Scrubs into Grey's Anatomy". TV Guide. Retrieved 14 September 2010.
  10. ↑ "Rachael Taylor Joins Grey's Anatomy". TV Guide. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
  11. ↑ "Minka Kelly and Rachael Taylor Close to Angel Gigs in ABC's Charlie's Angels". Deadline Hollywood. 27 January 2011.
  12. ↑ "Goodbye girls! ABC cancels Charlie's Angels". Entertainment Weekly. 14 October 2011. Archived from the original on 24 April 2012.
  13. ↑ Two More Sign on for The Darkest Hour – dreadcentral.com
  14. ↑ Schembri, Jim (9 February 2012). "Any Questions for Ben?". The Age. Australia. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  15. ↑ Paatch, Leigh (9 February 2012). "Movie review: Any Questions for Ben?". heraldsun.com. Archived from the original on 1 January 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  16. ↑ Goldberg, Lesley (25 February 2013). "Gillian Anderson, Rachael Taylor to Star in NBC's Rand Ravich Drama". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
  17. ↑ Goldberg, Lesley (29 January 2015). "Marvel's Jessica Jones Enlists Grey's Anatomy Alum". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 1 February 2015. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  18. ↑ "Viggo Mortensen and Rachael Taylor Reportedly Join the Cast of Paul Thomas Anderson's Next Film". 17 March 2023.
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