Taylor Russell

Taylor Russell McKenzie (born July 18, 1994) is a Canadian actress and model. After playing a number of minor roles, Russell received recognition for starring in the Netflix science fiction series Lost in Space (2018–2021). She rose to prominence for appearing in the drama film Waves (2019), and the horror film Escape Room (2019) and its 2021 sequel. For starring in the road film Bones and All (2022), she won the Marcello Mastroianni Award among other accolades. She performed onstage in the play The Effect.

Early life
Taylor Russell McKenzie was born on July 18, 1994, in the small community of Deep Cove, North Vancouver, located near Vancouver, British Columbia. Russell was raised in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal. She has an older brother and a younger brother. Russell, who was born to a white mother and a black father, an actor of Jamaican descent, grew up mostly with her mother's side of the family. Her father's parents were in the Windrush generation and moved from Jamaica to England. Her father lived in England until he was seven and then moved to Montreal. As a child she would visit her grandparents in Montreal, Quebec. She is from a large family on her father's side. She recalled that growing up she felt unaccepted by her peers due to the color of her skin. Her parents faced financial struggles, leading the family to rely on welfare, and they were frequently compelled to relocate, uprooting their lives a total of sixteen times to accommodate her father's professional pursuits. Russell also began working at the age of 13. Despite this adversity, Russell mentioned how in her younger years "there was always an opportunity for reinvention, to create something new.”

As a child, Russell was artistically inclined. She strived to pursue a career in ballet, and later as a painter. At twelve, Russell learned to play the bass guitar and carried it on the bus to school every day. When Russell was thirteen she sang Happy Face by the girl group Destiny's Child in front of her entire school. At eighteen, Russell took her first acting class, which led her to become interested in pursuing acting. She used her work savings to buy a car, and would drive to Los Angeles to audition. When money ran out, she would return home to work until she had enough earnings to audition again. Some of the jobs that Russell worked were at restaurants, a jewelry store, and a butcher's shop. This routine went on for four years until she landed her first major TV role. While living in Vancouver, she took a $15-an-hour job fulfilling orders at an Amazon warehouse. The day before her first shift, she was in a traffic accident and received an $8,000 insurance settlement for her back injury, which she used to move to Los Angeles.

Career
Russell made her professional acting debut in 2012, with a small guest role in an episode of The CW medical drama series Emily Owens, M.D.. In 2014, she starred as Lark Voorhies in the Lifetime television film The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story, and Jennifer in the Disney XD television film Pants on Fire.

Russell made guest appearances in the CBC Television drama series Strange Empire (2015), the TNT science fiction series Falling Skies (2015), and the Freeform supernatural horror series Dead of Summer (2016). She also had roles in the teen drama film Before I Fall (2017) and the supernatural horror film Down a Dark Hall (2018).

In 2018, Russell earned recognition for her starring role as Judy Robinson in the science fiction series Lost in Space, a Netflix remake of the original 1965 series, for which she received critical praise and a nomination for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Streaming Presentation. Essence magazine stated that she "impresses in her role as a genius medic and doctor, who is compassionate and caring even in the face of danger." The series concluded in December 2021, after three seasons. On her ability to represent Black women in a science fiction series, Russell stated, "I know there are not a lot of women of color who are in the sci-fi genre and I feel really lucky that they chose me to hold that position on our show ... It's a huge honor for me and I don't take it lightly. It holds a really big place in my heart."

In 2019, Russell had her film breakthrough with the leading role of Zoey Davis in the psychological horror film Escape Room, which was a major commercial success, surpassing initial expectations and grossing $155.7 million. Also in 2019, Russell garnered critical acclaim for her starring role in the drama film Waves, which was released by A24 Films on November 15, 2019. IndieWire website dubbed her performance a "revelation", going on to write that "While Waves is filled with excellent performances from its stacked cast, it's Russell that makes off with its most spectacular turn." The Los Angeles Times called her and her co-star Kelvin Harrison Jr. "two of the fastest-rising stars of their generation." For her performance in the film, Russell received the Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Performer and the Virtuoso Award at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, among several others.

Russell starred in Thor Freudenthal's romantic drama Words on Bathroom Walls (2020), alongside Charlie Plummer, Andy Garcia, and AnnaSophia Robb, which earned positive responses both from critics and audiences (89 and 94% "fresh", respectively, as of January 2022). She also co-directed, wrote, and produced the documentary short film The Heart Still Hums, which earned acclaim and numerous awards, including the Palm Springs International ShortFest Award for Best Documentary Short.

In 2021, Russell starred in the comedy-drama film Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets, and reprised the role of Zoey Davis in the Escape Room sequel Escape Room: Tournament of Champions, which grossed $51.8 million. Russell directed part of the music video for her Waves co-star Alexa Demie's "Leopard Limo (Archive LL11)", which also features her voice. The following year, Russell starred alongside Timothée Chalamet in the romance horror film Bones and All, directed by Luca Guadagnino. The film premiered at the 79th Venice Film Festival on September 2 to positive reviews. Russell's performance in the film earned her widespread critical acclaim and the Marcello Mastroianni Award.

In 2023, Russell began starring as Connie in the play The Effect by Lucy Prebble at the Royal National Theatre in London. The play transferred to The Shed in New York City in March 2024 and received widespread critical acclaim across both regions. The play was nominated for Best Revival at The Laurence Olivier Awards and Russell was nominated for her role at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards and the WhatsOnStage Awards.

Russell starred in the comedy film Mother, Couch opposite Ewan McGregor which premiered at the 48th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). She is set to appear in the thriller Hope, from director Na Hong-jin, alongside HoYeon Jung, Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander.

In July 2024 it was announced she would join the Luigi de Laurentiis jury panel for Best First Work at the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival.

Modeling and fashion
Russell made her modeling debut opening the SS23 Loewe show in 2022. Creative director of the Spanish luxury brand Jonathan Anderson chose Russell after meeting her through mutual friend Luca Guadagnino. Anderson said of the decision: "It was the start of a very special friendship and I just thought, she has to open the show. I'm so proud she agreed." In November 2022, she was named a Loewe Global Ambassador. Russell has modeled in campaigns for Loewe, Chanel, BYRDIE, and Prada. She has appeared in the magazines V, W, Fantastic Man, HommeGirls, Vogue, Dazed, Harper's Bazaar, The Face, The New York Times and Vogue Italia. Following her red-carpet appearances on the Bones and All press tour, Vogue hailed her a "bold style renegade", writing "she’s in a total fashion league of her own, choosing unique looks that stray from the glitzy status quo." Russell graced the cover of Vogue for the first time in the March 2024 issue of Vogue Italia by Paolo Roversi, and stated "I love Vogue Italia, it is such an example of pure creativity. I've never been able to look at one of its covers without being fascinated by it."

Russell made her Met Gala debut in 2024 as part of the Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion exhibition and received overwhelming acclaim from Vogue, Elle, and Harper's Bazaar, who described her as "Hollywood's newest It girl" and her debut "long awaited". Speaking to Vogue, Russell was labelled a muse for Jonathan Anderson, who said: “When we work together it’s always an incredible creative dialogue – she is an amazing collaborator and a very special friend."

Reception
Stars like Nicola Coughlan, India Amarteifio and Simone Ashley have all cited Russell as their style inspiration. Singer Rihanna stated she would like Russell to play her in a biopic of her life and that she wants to be her.

Personal life
Russell currently lives between New York and London. She is a fan of Patti Smith and has a small lightning bolt tattooed on her inner wrist, emulating the one Smith has on her knee. She called Smith "one of her heroes" and has read Smith's memoir Just Kids around 10 times. Russell rented a harp during the COVID-19 lockdowns in New York and learned to play the instrument through virtual lessons. Russell is trained in ballet and dances for 15 minutes every morning after waking up. Her favorite book is By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept by Elizabeth Smart. From June 2023 to May 2024, Russell dated English singer Harry Styles.