Taylor Schilling: We need more women-led shows like Orange Is The New Black

The actress plays Piper Chapman in the Netflix hit
Orange Is The New Black: Taylor Schilling plays Piper Chapman in the Netflix drama
Jessica Miglio/Netflix
Natasha Sporn12 April 2018
The Weekender

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Taylor Schilling has said she is surprised there aren’t more “knock-offs” of Orange Is The New Black as she called for more female-driven drama on television.

The American actress plays Piper Chapman in the award-winning Netflix prison drama. She hailed the show as important but said there had not been the follow-ups she had hoped for.

Schilling, 33, told the Standard: “Representation is one of the ways we can start to change the culture. If we’re not seeing everyone represented in our entertainment then there’s a lot more space for separateness and isolated thinking.

“The fact alone that OITNB for five years has been representing in a way that’s unique for television is wildly important.

Netflix hit: Taylor Schilling as Piper Chapman alongside Laura Prepon as Alex Vause
JoJo Whilden / Netflix

"I wish there were more fully-female drama on television. I’m surprised there aren’t more knock-offs or more people trying to do more of this kind of thing because it’s been so wildly successful. People do want to see a screen full of women.”

She said she was “really proud” to be a part of the show, which is due to return for a sixth series this year.

The Titan: Taylor Schilling stars as Abigail Janssen in the new sci-fi film
Signature Entertainment

Schilling added: “We’re seeing more of that and storytelling is such a base and bottom-line way to shift perspective. Orange has been doing that for a bit now. Making the other relatable and making room for somebody who may appear other to figure out spaces where they relate.”

Schilling’s latest role is in sci-fi film The Titan opposite Sam Worthington, who plays a pilot who becomes super-human in a scientific experiment.

The actress said: “This family had been forced to adjust to this new normal which doesn’t seem that far off from where we are at the moment — the earth being uninhabitable to such a degree that we have to find different ways to sustain life.

"For me, the script has this woman grieving and that felt like an interesting place to explore. But to do that wrapped in this context of a dystopian future that feels very close to the bone of where we are now, it felt very exciting.”

The Titan is available digitally and in cinemas from April 13.

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