Vanessa Taylor

Vanessa Taylor
Born	(1970-09-24) September 24, 1970 (age 54)[1] Boulder, Colorado, U.S.[1]
Nationality	American
Occupations	Screenwriter producer
Years active	1998–present
Notable work	Hope Springs Divergent The Shape of Water

Vanessa Taylor (born September 24, 1970)^[1] is an American screenwriter and television producer. She is best known for writing the screenplay for the films Hope Springs, Divergent, and The Shape of Water. For her work on The Shape of Water, Taylor was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Early life and education

As a child, Taylor wrote fairy tales. From age twelve, Taylor pursued acting and singing. She attended the Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan,^[2]: 84 and later joined The Groundlings for two years.^[2]: 57

Career

Her television credits include Game of Thrones, Gideon's Crossing, Alias, Everwood, Tell Me You Love Me, and Cupid. She also co-created Jack & Bobby.^[3]

Taylor's debut feature film script was Hope Springs (2012), directed by David Frankel, about a marriage therapist who tries to help a couple rekindle their loveless relationship after 31 years of marriage.^[4] She then co-wrote the screenplay for the sci-fi action film Divergent (2014).^[5]

Taylor co-wrote the screenplay for the fantasy romance film The Shape of Water (2017), along with its director Guillermo del Toro.^[6] For her work, she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

In 2019, Taylor performed an uncredited rewrite on Disney's live action remake of Aladdin, directed by Guy Ritchie.^[7] The following year, Taylor adopted the screenplay for Netflix's Hillbilly Elegy.^[8] She continued her relationship with Netflix over the following years, doing uncredited work on The School for Good and Evil (2022) and writing the screenplay for the young adult dystopian film Uglies (2024).

Awards and nominations

Taylor was nominated for two Primetime Emmy awards for Outstanding Drama Series for Game of Thrones in 2012 and 2013.^[9]

She was also nominated for a WGA Award (Drama Series) in 2013 for Game of Thrones.^[10]

In 2012, Taylor was nominated for a WIN Outstanding Writer Award (Outstanding Film or Show Written by a Woman) in 2012 for Hope Springs.^[3]

Alongside her The Shape of Water co-writer and director Guillermo del Toro, Taylor was honoured with the 2017 PEN Center USA Screenplay Award at the 27th Annual Literary Awards Festival.^[11]

She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for The Shape of Water. She was also nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Writing.

Filmography

Film

Writer

Year	Title	Director	Notes
2012	Hope Springs	David Frankel
2014	Divergent	Neil Burger
2017	The Shape of Water	Guillermo del Toro	Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay
2020	Hillbilly Elegy	Ron Howard	Nominated for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay
2024	Uglies	McG

Uncredited writer

• Aladdin (2019)
• The School for Good and Evil^[12] (2022)

Television

Producer

Year	Title	Notes
2012-2013	Game of Thrones	Co-executive producer (Season 3 and Season 2)
2007	Tell Me You Love Me	Consulting producer (Season 1)
2004-2005	Jack & Bobby	Co-creator and co-executive producer (Season 1)
2002-2004	Everwood	Supervising producer (Season 2)
2001-2002	Alias	Co-producer (Season 1)

Writer

Year	Title	Episode	Notes
2013	Game of Thrones	"Dark Wings, Dark Words"
2012		"The Old Gods and the New"
		"Garden of Bones"
2007	Tell Me You Love Me	"Episode #1.9"
		"Episode #1.5"
2005	Jack & Bobby	"Pilot"	Co-creator
2004	Everwood	"Do or Die"
2003		"Burden of Truth"
		"My Brother's Keeper"
		"Home"
		"Episode 20"
		"My Funny Valentine"
2002		"A Thanksgiving Tale"
		"The Doctor Is In"
2001	Alias	"Spirit"
		"A Broken Heart"
2000	Gideon's Crossing
1998	Cupid	"Botched Makeover"

References

1. "Vanessa Taylor". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
2. Meyers, Lawrence (June 2, 2010). Inside the TV Writers' Room: Practical Advice for Succeeding in Television. Syracuse University Press. ISBN 978-0-8156-3241-2.
3. Vanessa Taylor. IMDb
4. Fleming, Mike Jr. (March 16, 2011) Tommy Lee Jones For 'Great Hope Springs'?. deadline.com
5. Dockterman, Eliana. "A Look Ahead: Women Behind the Camera in 2014". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2017-12-04.
6. Lodge, Guy (2017-08-31). "Film Review: 'The Shape of Water'". Variety. Retrieved 2017-12-04.
7. https://geeksofcolor.co/2017/07/17/disney-hires-vanessa-taylor-for-aladdin-rewrites/
8. Fleming, Mike Jr. (February 28, 2018). "Oscar-Nominated 'Shape Of Water' Co-Writer Vanessa Taylor Set To Adapt 'Hillbilly Elegy'". Archived from the original on January 3, 2020. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
9. "Vanessa Taylor | Television Academy". Television Academy. Retrieved 2017-12-04.
10. "Previous Nominees & Winners". awards.wga.org. Retrieved 2017-12-04.
11. "'Shape of Water,' 'Better Call Saul' Scribes to Be Honored With PEN Center USA Writing Awards (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2017-12-04.
12. https://directories.wga.org/member/vanessataylor/

External links

• Vanessa Taylor at IMDb