Meet Taylor Russell, the actor rumored to be dating Harry Styles (2024)

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Taylor Russell, 29, is an actor, dancer, and model from Canada.

According to Elle's interview with Russell from November 2019, the actor was born in Vancouver and moved around a lot as a kid — 16 times, to be exact.

"I didn't grow up in a wealthy family," she said. "My parents struggled; we were on welfare. Things changed a lot, so there was always an opportunity for reinvention, to create something new."

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In June 2023, fans began speculating that Russell and Harry Styles were dating after they appeared to be spotted together in London.

On June 23, fans speculated that Styles and Russell were an itemafter TikTok user @ellahodgkinson shared images of the singer at London's White Cube gallery, with a woman purported to be Russell.

The next month, when Russell attended one of Styles' concerts in Vienna, the rumors picked up again. She was spotted at the concert in footage obtained by TMZ.

Later on in July, Russell attended Styles' final show of his two-year Love on Tour in Italy, Us Weekly reported. At the show, she was captured on camera holding hands with Glenne Azoff, the wife of Styles' longtime manager Jeff Azoff, according to a TikTok posted by user @tayrryupdate.

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Since then, they've been spotted together a few more times —most recently at Russell's play "The Effect" and its after-party.

On August 9, Styles and Russell were clearly photographed together for the first time, in photos obtained by Page Six. The two were seen smiling in the photos, taken at London's National Theatre where Russell is starring in "The Effect," a play by Lucy Prebble.

"It looked like they were holding hands," an unnamed source told Page Six, speaking of Styles and Russell. The source also told Page Six that Styles stayed by Russell "the whole time" and introduced her to his close friend James Corden.

Styles and Russell haven't confirmed that they have a relationship. Representatives for the two, respectively, didn't return requests for comment.

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Russell has been acting for over a decade. She got her first acting job in 2012 in an episode of "Emily Owens, MD" on The CW.

Her first credit on IMDb is for the short-lived CW series "Emily Owens, MD," which ran for one season in 2012.

The actor played "Mean Girl #1" in the show, and was credited as Taylor McKenzie, which is her birth name; Russell is actually her middle name.

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In 2014, she played Lark Voorhies — known for portraying Lisa Marie Turtle on "Saved by the Bell" — in "The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story."

"The Unauthorized Saved By the Bell Story," a Lifetime movie that was partially based on Dustin Diamond's 2009 biography "Behind the Bell," focused on the cast of "Saved by the Bell."

The movie was largely panned by critics upon its release in September 2014, with The Daily Beast calling it "blandly executed."

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Russell's breakout moment came when she starred as Judy Robinson in the Netflix reboot of "Lost in Space" from 2018 to 2021. She was nominated for a Saturn Award for her performance.

Netflix's "Lost in Space" was based on the CBS series of the same name that aired in the '60s, which was in turn based on the 1812 novel "The Swiss Family Robinson."

The show aired for three seasons from 2018 to 2021, and followed the Robinson family as they traveled through space. Russell played Judy (who also appeared in the '60s series), the eldest daughter of matriarch Maureen (Molly Parker) and stepdaughter to Maureen's husband John (Toby Stephens).

As Collider reported, Russell was nominated for a Saturn Award for best supporting actress in a streaming series for her performance in 2019.

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In 2019, she was top-billed in the surprise horror hit "Escape Room." She returned for the 2021 sequel, "Escape Room: Tournament of Champions."

According to Box Office Mojo by IMDb, the first "Escape Room" made $155.7 million worldwide against a $9 million budget. The 2021 sequel cost more and made less, but was still profitable, making over $65 million worldwide.

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Russell earned more critical acclaim for her roles in 2019's "Waves" and 2022's cannibal drama, "Bones and All," which costarred Timothée Chalamet.

In 2019, Russell starred in "Waves," an A24 drama, alongside Sterling K. Brown, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Renée Elise Goldsberry, and more.

In Vanity Fair's review of the film, K. Austin Collins wrote that Russell "gives the movie's great performance," adding she "stands out for the attractive sense of possibility she brings to the movie."

Three years later, Russell headlined "Bones and All," a film helmed by "Call Me By Your Name" director Luca Guadagnino.

Russell's depiction of a practicing cannibal in the movie earned her nominations for multiple critics awards and an Independent Spirit Award for best lead performance. She also won the Marcello Mastroianni Award at the Venice Film Festival, Vanity Fair reported, which recognizes an emerging new actor.

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Russell also models and was named the first US global ambassador for Loewe in 2022.

Russell's bold red-carpet style has made her one to watch in the fashion world, and she's built relationships in the community.

In 2022, she was named Spanish fashion house Loewe's first US-based global ambassador, according to Re-Edition magazine, and in September of that year Russell opened Loewe's spring/summer 2023 show at Paris Fashion Week.

Jonathan Anderson, Loewe's creative director, told Re-Edition that he met Russell through their mutual friend, Guadagnino. "I've never been so inspired by someone — it was the start of a very special friendship," Anderson said.

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Acting isn't Russell's only passion. She studied ballet and once dreamed of becoming a painter.

In an interview with Coveteur in September 2019, Russell spoke about her love of the arts and dance in particular.

"I've always loved the performing arts. I did ballet my whole life, I love dancing. I wake up every morning and dance for 15 minutes, and it's the only way I can get out of bed," Russell told the publication. "If you're in a mood and you just move in your body, it's the most helpful way to really be grounded and get present."

She later told Dazed in November 2022 that, for a time, she at one time thought of attending the well-known performing arts conservatory Juilliard to study dancing, and then aspired to become a painter.

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The actor is starring in the revival of Lucy Prebble's play "The Effect" in London.

"The Effect" has been running at London's National Theatre since August 1, and is expected to run through October 7. Russell stars opposite Paapa Essiedu, best known for "I May Destroy You," in the play that's about two young volunteers in a drug trial who fall in love.

The Guardian called Essiedu and Russell "gorgeous together" in a four-star review.