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Taylor Hickson

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Taylor Hickson
A blond woman holding a guitar
Hickson in 2015
Born
Taylor Delaney Hickson

(1997-12-11) 11 December 1997 (age 26)[1]
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
OccupationActress
Years active2015–present

Taylor Delaney Hickson (born 11 December 1997)[1] is a Canadian actress raised in Kelowna, British Columbia.

Following a minor part in the movie Blackway, Hickson won a role in the 2016 feature Deadpool. In addition to several subsequent parts in films, she later starred in the television series Aftermath. Between 2020 and 2022, she starred as Raelle Collar in the Freeform series Motherland: Fort Salem.

Early life

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Taylor Hickson was born in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, the oldest of four siblings. At age 11, she began singing folk tunes alongside her father at talent shows and soon developed an affection for guitar and piano. In a 2016 interview, Hickson discussed her fondness for performing music, noting, "you go to another place and you just can't find that adrenaline anywhere else."[2][3]

Career

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In late 2014, Hickson caught the attention of a casting agent who was a friend of her aunt. Initially uninterested in acting, she was later convinced to meet the agent, who signed her the same day. Over the following weeks, Hickson drove several hours to and from her auditions for roles.[3] In 2015, she won a silent part in the film Blackway as a troubled teenager.[4]

Hickson's breakthrough role came in the 2016 action-comedy Deadpool, her first speaking part. She played Meghan Orlovsky, a girl whom the titular character assists.[5] In an interview, Hickson noted that the scale of this movie, along with her speaking role, greatly increased her passion for acting. "I didn't really know how badly I wanted to work as an actor until Deadpool," she said. She further stated that prior to Deadpool, "I thought [acting] might just be a fun thing I did on the side. That was the thing that changed my life."[4]

Hickson was then cast as Brianna Copeland, a headstrong teenager in the 2016 post-apocalyptic show Aftermath. She labelled Brianna "a dream role", citing similarities between herself and the character.[3] "She's very outspoken, sarcastic, social. She's the combative version of me," she said. "We definitely share her impatience, her stubbornness and her temper. She might have a hardened exterior, but she loves with all she is. She loves hard and unconditionally, much like myself."[3] She summed the character up as emotionally driven, impulsive, and fun.[6]

While reviewing her work in the role, Contrast magazine called Hickson a "beautiful jewel of an actress".[7] Pop Culture Now predicted that she would have a bright future in acting.[8] TV Grapevine declared "Taylor Hickson may be young, but she has a talent well beyond her years."[9]

Hickson also revealed that she bonded with co-stars Levi Meaden and Julia Sarah Stone, who played her siblings on Aftermath, which facilitated their work. "[Levi] really was my older brother and Julia really was my sister. We totally have a sibling dynamic on- and off-screen. It made everything so easy and smooth", she noted.[4]

She won roles in subsequent films throughout 2016, including G.L.O.; Everything, Everything (2017); and Incident in a Ghost Land. Hickson played the lead role in the independent dramatic film Hunting Pignut, based on a true story about a girl searching for a man. She also stars in the 2017 feature Residue, in which she plays the daughter of a private investigator.[2][4] Her work in the film Giant Little Ones earned her a nomination for Best Female Lead at the 2019 Leo Awards.[10]

Hickson was cast as Petra, a goth hailing from a death cult, in the 2018 series Deadly Class.[11] Hickson highlighted the positive working environment of the show.[12] She was then cast as Raelle Collar, a lead character who is a conscripted witch in the 2020 supernatural drama show Motherland: Fort Salem.[13][14] The show's second season premiered in 2021.[15][16] On the role as Raelle, Hickson said that

I haven't been able to spend this much time with one character, one headspace. ... In film, it's one little facet of what the character is going through and one moment in life. It's pretty profound to spend this much time with one person, and she certainly feels like an extension of myself.[17]

When reviewing Motherland: Fort Salem, The A.V. Club highlighted that "the true standout is Hickson, whose Raelle is flinty and raw and convincingly conflicted about her power and how she wants to use it".[18] The Advocate commented that:

Motherland establishes its queer credentials early in the pilot episode when Raelle meets the mysterious and compelling Scylla [...]. The show's overt queerness and what appears to be an unbreakable bond between Raelle and Scylla made them one of the most shipped couples of the year in a series that is stylistically gorgeous and politically timely.[19]

Personal life

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In a 2016 interview, Hickson noted that she had issues with self-esteem during her upbringing. "I think it's sad that I have to constantly remind myself that I'm beautiful. Everything around us influences our brains to forget. The poster at the bus stop, that Instagram selfie, the ad on TV," she said. "Self-love takes practice."[7] She also revealed that performing had helped her gain more confidence in general.[7] She grew up admiring director Tim Burton and novelist Nicholas Sparks.[20]

In December 2016, while filming Ghostland, Hickson was told by director Pascal Laugier to bang her fists against a glass window and that it was safe to do so. The window then shattered and she fell on the glass, severely cutting the left side of her face. The wound required 70 stitches, which left her with permanent scarring.[21] In 2018, Hickson sued the film's production company, Incident Productions,[21][22] "seeking damages for lost income and future loss of income".[23] In 2019, Incident Productions "pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the safety and welfare of a worker under the Workplace Safety and Health Act" and was fined $40,000 by the province of Manitoba for the incident.[24] Hickson stated that the experience left her with "trust issues"; however, when working on the show Deadly Class, the show's "executive producer Adam Kane met with her before filming to assuage her concerns, telling her that they'd halt production immediately if she ever felt uncomfortable".[12] On that show's working environment, Hickson said, "It just made me understand that people gave a shit. People actually do care. You have to find the right people to work with you, and you'll know when that is".[12]

In a May 2020 interview conducted by fashion magazine Vanity Teen, Hickson discussed the influence of Tim Burton on her career.[25]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2015 The Mary Alice Brandon File Townsfolk #1 Short film
2015 Blackway Meth-head girl
2016 Deadpool Meghan Orlovsky
2016 Hunting Pignut Bernice "Story" Kilfoy
2017 Residue Angelina Harding
2017 Everything, Everything Kayra Bright
2018 A Picnic Table, At Dusk Ivy Short film
2018 Ghostland Young Vera Also known as Incident in a Ghostland
2018 Giant Little Ones Natasha Kohl
2024 Bad Genius Grace

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2016 Aftermath Brianna Copeland Main role
2018–2019 Deadly Class Petra Recurring role[11]
2020–2022 Motherland: Fort Salem Raelle Collar Main role[13]

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2016 Whistler Film Festival Award Rising Star Hunting Pignut Won [26]
2017 Leo Awards Best Lead Performance by a Female in a Motion Picture Hunting Pignut Nominated [27]
2019 Leo Awards Best Lead Performance by a Female in a Motion Picture Giant Little Ones Nominated [10]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Taylor Hickson". amazon.com. Archived from the original on 23 August 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Taylor Hickson". Syfy. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d Scuor, Crystal (16 October 2016). "Get Acquainted With Aftermath's Taylor Hickson". 604now. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d Knox-Smith, Michael (18 November 2016). "Taylor Hickson Talks Aftermath, Ryan Reynolds and More". mikesfilmtalk.com. Archived from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
  5. ^ Granger, Katie (18 February 2016). "This One Deadpool Movie Scene Pays Direct Homage To The Comic Books". moviepilot.com. Archived from the original on 7 April 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
  6. ^ Burke, Mel (26 September 2016). "Taylor Hickson: Aftermath and Dry Shampoo as Key to Apocalypse Survival". geekchicelite.com. Archived from the original on 23 August 2023. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
  7. ^ a b c Adams, Dillain (11 November 2016). "Taylor Hickson Dishes on Ryan Reynolds, SyFy's Aftermath and Original Music". Contrast. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  8. ^ Brown, Jameson (27 September 2016). "Taylor Hickson Talks Aftermath And The End Of The World". Pop Culture Now. Archived from the original on 23 August 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  9. ^ "Celebrity Spotlight: Taylor Hickson". TV Grapevine. 23 December 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  10. ^ a b "2019 Leo Nominations Highlight WFF Films". 23 April 2019. Archived from the original on 26 April 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  11. ^ a b Petski, Denise (9 November 2017). "Deadly Class: Syfy Sets Full Cast For Comic-Based Drama Pilot". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  12. ^ a b c Dodson, P. Claire (25 March 2020). "Motherland: Fort Salem Star Taylor Hickson Is Ready for Women to Lead". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  13. ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie; Petski, Denise (5 March 2019). "Motherland: Fort Salem Witches-Themed Drama Gets Freeform Series Order". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  14. ^ Dodson, P. Claire (19 March 2020). "Meet the Motherland: Fort Salem Cast — Here's Who Plays Raelle, Abigail, Tally, Scylla, and More". Teen Vogue. Archived from the original on 26 April 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  15. ^ "Witches go from hunted to hunters in Motherland: Fort Salem season 2 first trailer". EW.com. 7 June 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  16. ^ "Sisterhood is massive part of Motherland: Fort Salem". KGET 17. 17 June 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  17. ^ "Taylor Hickson on What She Loves Most About Freeform's Motherland: Fort Salem". Backstage. 20 July 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  18. ^ "Motherland: Fort Salem squanders its early potential". The A.V. Club. 13 March 2020. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  19. ^ "The 15 Best LGBTQ+ TV Shows of 2020". The Advocate. 16 December 2020. Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  20. ^ "Pop-Culturalist Chats with Taylor Hickson". Pop-Culturalist.com. 13 January 2017. Archived from the original on 8 February 2017. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  21. ^ a b Robb, David (6 March 2018). "Actress Taylor Hickson Sues Producers Over Disfiguring Injury". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  22. ^ Andrews, Travis M. (9 March 2018). "Taylor Hickson, an up-and-coming actress, was disfigured on a movie set. Now she's suing". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  23. ^ "Actress Taylor Hickson sues producers of Winnipeg-shot movie after face badly cut during filming". CBC News. 7 March 2018. Archived from the original on 6 August 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  24. ^ "Winnipeg film company fined $40K for incident that left actress with cuts to neck, face". CBC News. 27 November 2019. Archived from the original on 23 December 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  25. ^ Teen, Vanity (15 May 2020). "Vanity Teen Exclusive: Taylor Hickson By Aaron Desilva Vanity Teen 虚荣青年 Lifestyle & New Faces Magazine". www.vanityteen.com. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  26. ^ "Whistler Film Festival 2016". www.a71entertainment.com. Archived from the original on 17 February 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  27. ^ "Leo Awards, 2017 Winners & Nominees by Name". www.leoawards.com. Archived from the original on 28 February 2018. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
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