Robin Lord Taylor

Although the first nine years of Robin Lord Taylor's career were lined plentifully with short films, television appearances, and starring movie roles, it wasn't until his stint on the dramatic series "Gotham" that the young actor really won the attention he was due. Inheriting the role of the super villain The Penguin from the likes of Burgess Meredith and Danny De Vito-and providing an incarnation landing someplace between those of his two predecessors-Taylor quickly evolved from a relative unknown to the most talked about figure on one of the most popular new series of its season. Taylor was born and raised in Shueyville, Iowa. He studied speech at Northwestern University, and moved to New York in 2000 to pursue a career in acting. His first onscreen appearance came five years later in Spike Lee's "Jesus Children of America" segment of the 2005 anthology piece "All the Invisible Children." The following year, Taylor showcased his dramatic and comedic abilities alike with supporting roles in the grave coming-of-age film "The House Is Burning" (2006) and the wacky college farce "Accepted" (2006). Exemplifying his aptitude behind the scenes, Taylor co-created Creation Nation: A Live Talk Show with fellow Northwestern alumnus Billy Eichner, helping to launch the latter's comedy career with performances in New York, Los Angeles, Aspen, and Edinburgh in 2008. Taylor followed these performances with several middling supporting roles in film and television, including three separate episodes of "Law & Order (NBC (1990-2010), small parts in films "Step Up 3D" (2010) and "Another Earth" (2011), and one-off shots on various TV series before landing his proper big break: the coveted role of a young Oswald Cobblepot, a.k.a. The Penguin, on the Batman origin story series "Gotham" (Fox 2014-). After his first appearance in the series' pilot, Taylor was noted as one of the show's strongest assets, and a principal reason for continued interest in the program.