PHOTOGRAPHED BY KAT IRLIN / STYLED BY KATE DAVIDSON HUDSON / WRITTEN BY ROXANNE ROBINSON
Taylor Hill has had plenty of pinch-me moments. Now 26, Hill was once the youngest Victoria’s Secret Angel when she appeared in the storied brand’s annual televised runway show from 2014 to 2018, when it ceased production. The Colorado native has modeled for brands such as Ralph Lauren and Michael Kors, has been featured in the pages of Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and Elle magazine, and ranked on Forbes’s World’s Top-Earning Models list in 2015 and 2016, when earning about $4 million.
After modeling for 12 years, Hill has reached milestones others only dream about. Now, she has her sights set on the silver screen with the same imposter syndrome. LVR Magazine caught up with the multi-hyphenate at the cover shoot and over Zoom to hear what’s next. Spoiler alert: there is no grand plan.
The camera’s predilection for Hill was evidenced at the LVR shoot in Los Angeles, where the aspiring actress’ delicate yet striking beauty resembled the late Audrey Hepburn. When we caught up with her next, Hill was back in Los Angeles filming a small part in the upcoming Stealing Pulp Fiction, a comedy short by Danny Turkiewicz, in which he also stars along with Cazzie David, Chris Barry, John Rudnitsky and Seinfeld’s Jason Alexander.
“It’s a pretty funny comedy. I read it in the airport, waiting to board a flight, and laughed out loud. I wanted to be a part of it because I am a huge Seinfeld fan. I’m playing opposite John as a love interest,” she says, adding that the experience with Alexander was fantastic. “He is super kind and personable.”
The part comes on the heels of Hill’s first major movie production for a bit role in the Oscar-nominated Babylon, directed by Damien Chazelle and starring Brad Pitt plus a bevy of well-known gorgeous women including Margot Robbie, Olivia Wilde, Kaia Gerber and Chloe Fineman.
It was pretty cool, as I was on set with Damien and sitting next to Brad Pitt, which is never a bad thing. He [Pitt] was so nice and super professional. I was nervous but felt comfortable by the end of the day. He lets you know you are doing a great job.
Hill relates the casting to an out-of-body experience. “It was pretty cool, as I was on set with Damien and sitting next to Brad Pitt, which is never a bad thing,” says Hill. “He [Pitt] was so nice and super professional. I was nervous but felt comfortable by the end of the day. He lets you know you are doing a great job.”
The role required her first proper audition and was the first time she got her chops wet on a production of that scale. Pitt plays Jack, an aging silent film-era actor trying to transition to talkies. Known as a womanizer and alcoholic, Hill plays one of his love interests, an aspiring actress named Rebecca. Their scene proves cathartic to Pitt’s character. “It was a small part but a pivotal moment. It wasn’t about the relationship, but his struggle as a mega-famous actor trying to adjust. He realized he was repeating the same patterns and not really in love with Rebecca,” she explains.
In a sense, it was relatable as Rebecca’s ingénue status to Jack’s megastar role mimicked Hill’s status. “I felt nervous. I am green in the acting world and with these powerful, influential people, so I was in the same headspace as the character. At the same time, I was doing my job,” she reflects.
I felt nervous. I am green in the acting world and with these powerful, influential people, so I was in the same headspace as the character. At the same time, I was doing my job.
Doing her job still means modeling, though she has slowly been drifting toward acting since she was 19. Her first role was as a model in Nicolas Winding Refn’s 2016 film Neon Demon about a sinister model. The film, starring Elle Fanning, Jena Malone, Christina Hendricks and Keanu Reeves, wasn’t a smash hit but proved invaluable to Hill.
“I’m shy, so I didn’t think I would be good at it. I had a great experience on set with Nicolas. Working with him is cool because he is so creative. The process was like something I had never seen. It was fun to do something different,” she recalls. He would offer her another role on Too Old to Die Young, a part neo-noir, part satire and part surrealism based Amazon Prime series.
It’s been a slow process for Hill to transition to film and television, but one that suits her personality. “I’m taking it step by step and slowly getting my feet wet,” she says, noting she isn’t in any hurry to ditch the modeling gig. “I love my job and don’t want to give it up to pursue acting full-time entirely, but you must dedicate yourself to learning a new craft. I want to do that and do it well. You start at the bottom and work your way up.”
From the start, she recruited an acting coach with whom she works on a project-by-project basis. When she has downtime, she meets her coach on Zoom, or if she’s in LA, she grabs a live session. “I learn as I go, and I take it daily. It’s difficult to fully commit to an acting class as I am all over the place,” she adds. Winding Refn’s direction proved invaluable. “I was lucky to experience collaborative directors on my first projects. [Winding Refn] taught me how he likes his actors to perform and gave me tips on what he wanted me to accomplish.”
Hill cautions that being a model doesn’t give one a leg up. “I feel out of my element on a film set, like I’m 14 and starting again and have no idea what is happening, which makes it so fun. The mindfulness and awareness of the camera are completely different, the only similarity is being on camera,” she adds. Even the scheduling is different. “In fashion, it could change daily, but I’ve known the scheduling for this shoot on Stealing Pulp Fiction for three weeks.
I love everything creative. Fashion is crazy and whirlwind, whereas acting is less so, but it’s hard to compare when I am in awe that I am even here.
She avoids comparing the two.”I love everything creative; fashion is crazy, and whirlwind whereas acting is less so, but it’s hard to compare when I am in awe that I am even here.”
The humility extends to modeling despite a long run thus far. “Becoming a model was like the best thing ever. I still think, ‘I can’t believe I get to do this,’ she continued. Hill reiterates that she is from the “middle of nowhere.”
“I’m from a Colorado ski town [Winter Park], and now I am going to Chanel castings? From the mountains to New York to Paris?” she marvels. She moved to New York City at 14, and her mother was with her every step of the way until she was 18, something for which she is eternally grateful, as it protected her from the fates other less fortunate models encountered. “I wouldn’t have the career that I do without her.” Her mother did this while juggling the responsibilities of three more kids back in Colorado, so the sacrifice is not lost on Hill.
It’s probably why, when visiting Nashville with friends, she jumped on Zillow (as she is prone to when visiting another city), found and immediately fell in love with a house. While she may call the Great Smoky Mountains “hills” as compared to the Rockies, the easy vibe in the southern city, known for music, a vibrant social scene and mountain sports, feels a lot like home. She lives there with her fiancé, Daniel Fryer, when not jetting to jobs in New York, Los Angeles, Paris, etc.
I’m from a Colorado ski town [Winter Park], and now I am going to Chanel castings? From the mountains to New York to Paris?
When life calls for more grounding than a country home, Hill refutes the popular social media self-care trends and relies more on her state of mind.
“I love to keep self-care grounded in mindfulness and mental awareness. It’s not necessarily a product or a routine. Self-care is checking in: Where are you? How do you feel? Do you need a nap or to take a run? Be alone? Be with friends? I always tap into my heart and head to see where it is. Sometimes I don’t feel like going to exercise when I should, but it’s OK to do nothing, too.”
I love to keep self-care grounded in mindfulness and mental awareness. It’s not necessarily a product or a routine. Self-care is checking in: Where are you? How do you feel? Do you need a nap or to take a run? Be alone? Be with friends? I always tap into my heart and head to see where it is. Sometimes I don’t feel like going to exercise when I should, but it’s OK to do nothing, too.
When she does need a more physical check-in, her go-to is a shower that hits all the bases. “If I am jet-lagged or emotional and tired after a long day, I take an ‘everything shower.’ I wash my hair, shave my legs, exfoliate, wash my face, brush my teeth and use plenty of lotion afterward. It refreshes me, and it’s never a ‘have to do it’ task. It’s the closest thing to a routine if I don’t know what I am feeling or what to do next,” she says. Plus, it’s a routine that can be done anywhere, key for someone always on the road.
To know who you truly are, you need experience and to feel grounded in your passions and beliefs. Right now, I want to do as much as possible with this period in life. I didn’t get here overnight.
While both businesses involve the element of surprise, one thing Hill is sure about is getting married. At the LVR shoot, she reveals that she and Fryer would wed this spring. The rest is TBD. Hill explains she isn’t in any rush to venture into product collaborations and launches, aka the fashion/entertainment formula du jour.
“I’m always winging it. I’m a Pisces. I love to keep my mind open to anything and take it as it comes,” she notes. “I feel so young and need to see where time takes me. To know who you truly are, you need experience and to feel grounded in your passions and beliefs. Right now, I want to do as much as possible with this period in life. I didn’t get here overnight. I can’t imagine where I will be in another 12 years.”
What is sure is her devil-may-care attitude. “I always had a relaxed approach to things. I don’t prefer either modeling or acting because I love everything creative and fun. I try not to get ahead of myself and the craft. It’s hard to compare when I am in awe that I am even here.”
