Alan Taylor (director)

Alan Taylor (born January 13, 1959)[1] is an American television and film director. He is known for his work on TV shows such as Lost, The West Wing, Six Feet Under, Sex and the City, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire, Deadwood, and Mad Men. He also directed films such as Palookaville, Thor: The Dark World, and Terminator Genisys. In 2007 Taylor won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for The Sopranos episode "Kennedy and Heidi". In 2008 and 2018 he was also nominated in the same category for the Mad Men episode "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" and the Game of Thrones episode "Beyond the Wall" respectively.

Alan Taylor
Taylor at the October 2013 world premiere of Thor: The Dark World at the Odeon Leicester Square in London
Born (1959-01-13) January 13, 1959
Alma materNew York University
OccupationTelevision director, film director
Years active1988–present
Spouse(s)Nicki Ledermann (m. 2004; div. 2014)
Children3

Early life

Taylor's father, James J. Taylor, was a private in the U.S. army translating for Voice of America, stationed in Yokohama, who subsequently held numerous jobs before becoming a videographer in Washington, D.C.. Taylor's mother, Mimi Cazort, was curator emerita for the National Gallery of Canada. His sister is the indie rock musician Anna Domino.[2]

He spent part of his life in Manor Park, Ottawa, Canada, and attended Manor Park Public School and Lisgar Collegiate Institute high school. As part of the Communications Club at Lisgar, he acted in its production of The Mouse That Roared. He went on to major in history at the University of Toronto and then at New York City's Columbia University before transferring to New York University to study film under instructors including director Martin Scorsese.[1]

Career

Taylor has directed for numerous programs on both network television and premium cable, most often on HBO. Besides his television work, Taylor has directed five feature films: Palookaville, The Emperor's New Clothes, Kill the Poor, Thor: The Dark World, and Terminator Genisys.

Taylor joined the crew of the HBO western drama Deadwood as a director for the first season in 2004. The series was created by David Milch and focused on a growing town in the American Old West. Taylor directed the episode "Here Was a Man".[3] He returned as a director for the second season in 2005 and helmed the episode "Requiem for a Gleet".[4] Taylor has directed the pilot episodes of Mad Men ("Smoke Gets in Your Eyes") and Bored to Death as well as subsequent episodes of each. He has directed two episodes from season 1 of Game of Thrones and four episodes of season 2.[5] Taylor directed Thor: The Dark World (2013), the sequel to 2011's Thor.[6] His latest directorial venture was the 2015 film Terminator Genisys.[7] He worked on a television adaptation of the Strugatsky brothers’ 1971 science fiction novel Roadside Picnic for the WGN America network.[8] Taylor returned to direct for the seventh season of Game of Thrones.[9]

Personal life

Taylor currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, and has three children, with his ex wife, award-winning makeup artist Nicki Ledermann, named Ginger, Willa and Jamieson.

Directing filmography

Film

Short film

  • That Burning Question (1990, also writer)

Television

Reception

Below is the critical, public and commercial reception to films Taylor has directed, as of July 13, 2015.

Film Rotten Tomatoes[27] Metacritic[28] CinemaScore[29] Budget Box office[30]
Palookaville64% (11 reviews)N/AN/AN/AN/A
The Emperor's New Clothes73% (85 reviews)60 (28 reviews)N/AN/AN/A
Kill the Poor25% (8 reviews)52 (7 reviews)N/AN/AN/A
Thor: The Dark World66% (274 reviews)54 (44 reviews)A-$170 million$644.8 million
Terminator Genisys27% (264 reviews)38 (41 reviews)B+$155 million$435.9 million

References
  1. "Ottawa-educated director took Emmy for Sopranos' famed snuff-out episode". Canada.com. The Ottawa Citizen. September 20, 2007. Archived from the original on November 15, 2013. Retrieved 2013-12-15. ...the 48-year-old TV director...
  2. Estrada, Louie (February 13, 2005). "James Taylor Dies; Put Theater on Video". The Washington Post. p. C11. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007.
  3. Sarnoff, Elizabeth (2004-04-11). "Here Was a Man". Deadwood. Season 1. Episode 4. HBO.
  4. Mann, Ted (2005-03-27). "Requiem for a Gleet". Deadwood. Season 2. Episode 4. HBO.
  5. Goldberg, Lesley (September 12, 2011). "'Game of Thrones': Neil Marshall Among Season 2 Directors". The Hollywood Reporter
  6. Kroll, Justin (September 5, 2013). "'Thrones' and 'Thor: The Dark World' Helmer Eyed to Direct Next 'Terminator'". Variety. Retrieved 2013-11-03.
  7. Kroll, Justin (September 5, 2013). "Terminator: Genisys". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved 2013-11-03.
  8. Schwartz, Terri (September 11, 2015). "Terminator Genisys Alan Taylor returning to TV with Roadside Picnic adaptation at WGN America". Zap2It.
  9. Hibberd, James (June 29, 2016). "Game of Thrones season 7 directors revealed". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
  10. McNary, Dave (July 3, 2018). "'Sopranos' Prequel Movie Taps Director Alan Taylor". Variety. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  11. ""Pax Soprana" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  12. HBO. ""The Strong, Silent Type" on The Sopranos episode guide". Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  13. ""Rat Pack" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  14. ""The Fleshy Part of the Thigh" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  15. ""The Ride" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  16. ""Kaisha" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  17. ""Stage 5" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  18. ""Kennedy and Heidi" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  19. ""Blue Comet" on The Sopranos episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  20. ""It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" on Six Feet Under episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 30 January 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
  21. ""Affair" on Big Love episode guide". HBO. Archived from the original on 29 January 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
  22. AMC. ""Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" on Mad Men episode guide". Archived from the original on 28 January 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
  23. AMC. ""Ladies Room" on Mad Men episode guide". Archived from the original on 4 February 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
  24. AMC. ""Nixon vs. Kennedy" on Mad Men episode guide". Archived from the original on 4 February 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
  25. AMC. ""The Mountain King" on Mad Men episode guide". Archived from the original on 29 January 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
  26. "Boardwalk Empire episode "Nights in Ballygran" synopsis". HBO. Archived from the original on 29 October 2010. Retrieved October 24, 2010.
  27. "Alan Taylor". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  28. "Alan Taylor". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  29. "CinemaScore". cinemascore.com. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  30. "Alan Taylor Movie Box office". boxofficemojo.com. Amazon.com. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
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