Claim: Taylor Schilling plays the protagonist in a comedy-drama.

Taylor Schilling -LRB- born July 27 , 1984 -RRB- is an American actress . She is known for her role as Piper Chapman on the Netflix original comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black -LRB- 2013 -- present -RRB- , for which she received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series and two Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Actress -- Television Series Musical or Comedy and Best Actress -- Television Series Drama . She made her film debut in the 2007 drama Dark Matter . Schilling also starred in the short-lived NBC medical drama Mercy -LRB- 2009 -- 10 -RRB- . Her other films include Atlas Shrugged : Part I -LRB- 2011 -RRB- , the romantic drama The Lucky One -LRB- 2012 -RRB- and the comedy The Overnight -LRB- 2015 -RRB- .