From Abbott Elementary to Insecure, Courtney Taylor continues to evolve with each role she takes on.
Although she feels the most at home with comedy, whether it’s in online skits or playing around with her loved ones, Taylor has always had a fascination with drama, and she loves the transformation that actors undergo while taking on various roles. Now, she will step out of her comfort zone and into the world that she’s long been captivated by as she joins the popular Bosch universe by way of the Prime Video spinoff, Ballard.
“As much as comedy feels like home, I’m so happy that drama has found a way into my career and I’ve been able to really exercise that muscle and drama,” Taylor told Blavity’s Shadow and Act in a recent interview as the series launched.
On landing her first drama role
“To be a part of Michael Connelly’s universe, in any way, is always super special,” she continued. “I’ve loved all of his work. [The] Lincoln Lawyer, and the Bosch series itself, was always to me, very good. I was excited to be a part of this series because I think it was something that was so beautifully written, I mean the books are so good, and now that I’m involved in this project, this woman-led cold case unit that is very adamant about finding justice and caring for people, I cannot imagine playing a better role. I’m so excited that they believed in me enough to take on this role, and that I had this wonderful team of people rallying behind me.”
Who is Samira Parker in ‘Ballard’?
Bosch focuses on Detective Renée Ballard (Maggie Q) and her work in the LAPD’s cold case unit, and Taylor plays Samira Parker, who, according to a character description, is a “wary, impulsive and tough woman with a burning desire for justice.”
“I think what makes her the most unique is her passion,” Taylor said of her character. “I think this cold case unit that we’re talking about in Ballard, it talks about the underfunded. It talks about how [the] majority of the people are volunteers and not being paid. There’s an episode where she basically says that she’s the only paid staff member. Ballard is the only paid staff member. Everybody else is here, but just because they’re passionate about it and they want to help people and people deserve to get answers — especially people who were waiting decades for answers about their loved ones.”
She added, “I just really thought that made it completely different from anything we’ve seen because you get to see the gritty of it, and how passionate people have to be to work on a cold case unit.”
What her acting journey has taught her so far
Whether the role is big or small, Taylor understands the art of pouring herself into various characters we’ve grown to love. Her recurring role on Insecure as Issa Dee’s assistant Sequoia, showcased her as the “I got it covered” girl, and she also shines as Janine Teague’s close friend, Erika, in Abbott Elementary.
Taylor, who also had a series regular role in Netflix’s Neon, says each character causes her to lend more trust in herself.
“I think I’ve spent a lot of time doubting me,” she said. “I think it’s so easy, especially when you’re young, to be like, ‘I don’t know if this is good. I don’t know if this is right.’ But, I think as I’ve gotten further into this career and gotten such wonderful opportunities to work with amazing people, it’s just a validation that I needed inside of me to say, ‘Courtney, you are good at this and because you enjoy doing it so much, and you want it to be good, it will be good.’”
Taylor added, “It was a lot of me trusting myself. That’s what I learned, personally. Professionally, I learned to be extremely flexible, to be ready to change whatever I needed to change to serve the team, to serve the people around me, to serve the cast I need to work with. I was so ready to be flexible, so ready to help when it came to like ad-libs or fun moments and stuff like that, because I wanted to be of service to everyone around me. I think that’s the goal really, just to be of service to the people you’re working with, so they can be of service to you.”
At the end of the day, Taylor’s goal is to create, whether that’s in front of the camera or behind it, particularly stories that center people of color and explore narratives that are different.
Ballard Season 1is now streaming on Prime Video.
