# Jax Taylor

Jason Michael Cauchi, (born July 11, 1979) known professionally as Jax Taylor, is an American television personality, model, and actor. He was a series regular on the Bravo reality television series Vanderpump Rules (2013–2020) for eight seasons and its spin-off series The Valley (2024–present).

## Early life and education

Taylor was raised Catholic and attended church until he was 19 years old. In 1998, he graduated from Eisenhower High School in Shelby Township, Michigan. He attended Michigan State University and community college, but he dropped out of school to enter the Navy. He was in the Navy for 6 months, 4 days and was trained at a base in Norfolk, Virginia.

## Career
### Modeling

From 2002 to 2010, Taylor worked as a model in Europe and lived in Miami. Taylor signed with Ford Models in New York City. He has appeared in several magazines, including Trump Magazine, V Man, GQ Japan, Men’s Health, Cosmopolitan, 944 Magazine, Esquire, Instinct, CosmoGirl and Out. He has also starred in campaigns for Target, Macy's, JCPenney, Old Navy, Nordstrom, Kohl's, Skechers, Paul Mitchell, AussieBum, 2$^{(x)}$ist, Taco Bell and Abercrombie & Fitch. In 2018, he resumed his modelling career by starring in a Jack Victor campaign. In 2014, Taylor collaborated with Xcalibur Brand to create a shoe and sweater collection. In 2014, Taylor also created a fitness application, which was discontinued after a few months.

### Television

Early in his career, he worked as an uncredited background actor in several television shows such as 2 Broke Girls, The O.C., Arrested Development, Dexter and Will & Grace. In 2009, he was credited as Hot Guy 2 in Dance Club on Desperate Housewives, giving a drink at a club to Nicollette Sheridan's character. He started working at Lisa Vanderpump's restaurants SUR and Villa Blanca, which earned him a spot on the reality television series Vanderpump Rules in 2013, following the lives of the SUR and Villa Blanca servers. Taylor and Brittany Cartwright got their own spin-off television series Vanderpump Rules: Jax & Brittany Take Kentucky, which followed the couple's visit to Cartwright's hometown in Kentucky. The couple have also appeared in three episodes of Vanderpump Rules: Watch with Brittany Cartwright and Jax Taylor (2022–23) on Peacock. In November 2023, at BravoCon event, Vanderpump Rules' executive producers announced that Taylor will appear as a guest in the eleventh season of Vanderpump Rules.
In a May 2023 interview with the Rolling Stone, Taylor confirmed that he had filmed a new reality show titled House of Villains. The series premiered on October 12, 2023 on E!. The show followed ten television villains competing for a $200,000 prize and the title of "America’s Ultimate Supervillain." He was the first contestant to be voted off the competition.
On June 28, 2023, Variety reported that a Vanderpump Rules spin-off starring Taylor, Brittany Cartwright and Kristen Doute was in early development at Bravo. On January 18, 2024, Bravo released a trailer for the reality series called The Valley, which premiered on March 19, 2024. The series stars five couples, including Taylor and Cartwright. In May 2024, The Valley was renewed for a second season, with the full cast returning.

### "Jax's" Studio City bar

In October 2023, Taylor opened up a sports bar "Jax's" in Studio City, California with wife Cartwright and three other business partners. He worked out a deal with the owners of Rocco's tavern and was able to open extremely quickly due to the bones of a bar being in place from a previous venture. People magazine noted that "Cartwright, a Kentucky native, even incorporated her family's famed "Mamaw's Beer Cheese" into the menu (a plot line when the two were on VPR.)"

## Personal life

He began dating Brittany Cartwright in 2015. The couple got engaged in Malibu, California on June 7, 2018 at the beachside restaurant Neptune’s Net. The couple wed on June 29, 2019, at the Kentucky Castle in Versailles, Kentucky.
In August 2024, Cartwright filed for divorce from Taylor, citing irreconcilable differences.
In September 2024, Taylor announced on Instagram that he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and PTSD and had checked himself into an inpatient treatment facility.

## Filmography
### As actor

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | Arrested Development | Diner guest | Uncredited |
| 2006 | The O.C. | Party guest | Episode: "Earth Girls Are Easy"; Uncredited |
| 2009 | Desperate Housewives | Hot Guy 2 in Dance Club | Episode: "Look Into Their Eyes and You See What They Know" |
| 2011 | 2 Broke Girls | Guy Carrying Boxes | Episode: "And the Really Petty Cash" |
| 2012 | Dexter | Uncredited extra | Episode: "This Is the Way the World Ends" |
| 2016 | Sharknado: The 4th Awakens | Guardsman #2 | Television film |
| 2022 | Savage Salvation | Good Ol' Boy | Film |

### As himself

| Year | Title | Notes |
| 2012–14 | The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills | 7 episodes |
| 2013–20, 2024 | Vanderpump Rules | Main cast: seasons 1–8; guest: season 11; 165 episodes |
| 2015–23 | Watch What Happens Live! | 6 episodes |
| 2015 | The Real Housewives of New York City | Episode: "London Calling"; uncredited |
| 2017 | Then and Now with Andy Cohen | Episodes: "2003" & "1990" |
| 2017 | Vanderpump Rules: Jax & Brittany Take Kentucky | 6 episodes; also executive producer |
| 2019 | Basically Stassi | Episode: "Stassi and Beau Go Toe to Toe with Jax and Brittany" |
| 2020 | Celebrity Call Center | Episode: "The Shift With the Gen X Tik Tok" |
| 2022 | The Doctors | Episode: "Reality Star Gets Brotox!" |
| 2023 | Vanderpump Rules: Watch with Brittany Cartwright and Jax Taylor | 3 episodes |
| 2023 | House of Villains | Contestant on season 1; 4 episodes |
| 2024–present | The Valley | Main cast; 12 episodes |

### Podcasts

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2023– present | When Reality Hits with Jax and Brittany | Host | PodcastOne |