Taylor Cole, born in 1984 in Tarrant County, Texas, is an American actress and former fashion model. She attended Mirabeau B. Lamar High School in Arlington, Texas, where she was an accomplished athlete. During her high school years, Cole was a member of the Junior Olympics volleyball squad. It was also during this time that she developed an interest in modeling.

Modeling Career

Following high school, Cole moved to New York City to pursue a modeling career full-time. Her athletic build and striking appearance helped her secure work in print and television advertisements. She appeared in a number of national campaigns for well-known brands, including Crest toothpaste, Dooney & Bourke handbags, and Old Spice. Her modeling career also took her abroad, with photo shoots in countries such as Australia, Germany, France, and Italy.

Transition to Acting

While visiting her mother, Deborah Quinn, and stepfather, actor Shawn Christian, in Los Angeles, Cole took the opportunity to audition for roles. She landed her breakout role as Erika Spalding on the now-defunct WB television series Summerland in 2004. To film the show, she relocated to Los Angeles, marking the beginning of her acting career. Cole also acted alongside her stepfather in the series.

Television and Film Appearances

Following her debut on Summerland, Cole continued to appear in a variety of television and film projects. She was featured in music videos, including Ryan Cabrera’s “True” and Papa Roach’s “Scars.” On television, she had a guest role as Sarah Blake, an art dealer, in the “Provenance” episode of Supernatural, a role she reprised in the episode “Clip Show” during season eight. She also held guest roles on other network series, such as Numb3rs on CBS and as Bianca in CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

In film, Cole portrayed the character Desire in the horror remake April Fool’s Day, and she had a supporting role in 12 Rounds, an action film produced by WWE Films, starring John Cena. She expanded her work further with a recurring role in Heroes, playing Private Rachel Mills in the digital miniseries The Recruit, before joining the main series in early 2009 with the same character.