Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 21:48, 26 May 2023

Zoe Kazan
Kazan in 2014
Born	Zoe Swicord Kazan (1983-09-09) September 9, 1983 (age 41) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Alma mater	Yale University
Occupations	Actor playwright screenwriter
Years active	2003–present
Partner	Paul Dano (2007–present)
Children	2
Parents	Nicholas Kazan Robin Swicord
Relatives	Maya Kazan (sister) Elia Kazan (paternal grandfather) Molly Kazan (paternal grandmother)

Zoe Swicord Kazan (/ˈkəˈzæn/; born September 9, 1983) is an American actress, playwright, and screenwriter. She made her acting debut in the film Swordswallowers and Thin Men (2003) and later appeared in films such as The Savages (2007), Revolutionary Road (2008), and It's Complicated (2009). She starred in Happythankyoumoreplease (2010), Meek's Cutoff (2010), Ruby Sparks (2012), and What If (2013). In 2014, she appeared in the HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge, for which she received an Emmy nomination. She portrayed Emily Gardner in the film The Big Sick (2017), and in 2018 appeared in the Coen Brothers film The Ballad of Buster Scruggs in the episode "The Gal Who Got Rattled".

She has appeared in several Broadway productions. She also wrote Ruby Sparks and co-wrote Wildlife (2018) with her partner Paul Dano (who directed Wildlife and co-starred with Kazan in Ruby Sparks). In 2020, she co-starred in the HBO miniseries The Plot Against America and in 2021, she co-starred as Pia Brewer in the Netflix limited series Clickbait.

Early life

Kazan was born in Los Angeles, the daughter of screenwriters Nicholas Kazan and Robin Swicord. Her paternal grandparents were film and theatre director Elia Kazan and playwright Molly Kazan (née Thacher). Elia was an Anatolian Greek emigrant from Istanbul, while Molly was a Mayflower descendant. The family surname was originally Kazantzoglou (Greek: Καζαντζόγλου).

Kazan was educated at the private Wildwood School, Windward School, and at the Marlborough School in Hancock Park, Los Angeles. She attended Yale University where she was a member of the Manuscript Society, and graduated in 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in theatre.

Career

2000s

After her film debut in 2003 as Samantha in Swordswallowers and Thin Men, Kazan had her first professional stage role in the 2006 off-Broadway revival of The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, starring Cynthia Nixon.

In 2007, she had a small role in The Savages, starring Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman, and guest-appeared in an episode of Medium. She next appeared in the films Fracture and In the Valley of Elah. That fall, she returned to the stage in a The New Group production of 100 Saints You Should Know and Jonathan Marc Sherman's Things We Want, directed by Ethan Hawke.

In January 2008, Kazan made her Broadway debut opposite S. Epatha Merkerson and Kevin Anderson in a revival of William Inge's Come Back, Little Sheba. Ben Brantley of The New York Times called her performance "first-rate", adding, "Ms. Kazan is terrific in conveying the character's self-consciousness." In the fall, she appeared on stage as Masha in a Broadway revival of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull opposite Kristin Scott Thomas, Carey Mulligan, and Peter Sarsgaard. That year she also had roles in August, Me and Orson Welles and Revolutionary Road.

Kazan is also a playwright. In 2009, her play Absalom premiered at the Humana Festival of New American Plays in Louisville, Kentucky. The play, about a father's tense relationships with his children, had been extensively read and workshopped since Kazan's junior year at Yale. She ended the year playing Meryl Streep's daughter in the Nancy Meyers comedy It's Complicated. She appeared in the Broadway production of A Behanding in Spokane with Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell until June 6, 2010. She also had lead roles in the movies I Hate Valentine's Day and The Exploding Girl, both released in 2009.

2010s

In 2010, she had a main role in the comedy-drama Happy. Thank You. More. Please. as Mary Catherine, the cousin of Josh Radnor's character. She also starred as Millie Gately in 2010 (alongside Paul Dano, playing her husband) in Kelly Reichardt's independent Western drama Meek's Cutoff. In the fall, Kazan played Harper Pitt in Signature Theatre Company's 20th-anniversary production of Tony Kushner's Angels in America. On the small screen, she appeared in four episodes of HBO's Bored to Death as Nina, the love interest of a fictionalized Jonathan Ames, played by Jason Schwartzman.

Her play We Live Here, about a dysfunctional family, received its world premiere production from October 12 to November 6, 2011, at the off-Broadway Manhattan Theater Club in New York City. Among the ensemble cast was Amy Irving, and the director was 2010 Obie Award winner Sam Gold.

Kazan's next project, for which she wrote the screenplay, was Ruby Sparks, a comedy-romance film directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, and starring Kazan, Paul Dano, Chris Messina, Antonio Banderas, Annette Bening, Deborah Ann Woll and Steve Coogan.

In 2014, her third play, Trudy and Max in Love, opened at the South Coast Repertory. Also in 2014, she starred in the HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge, which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series.

In 2017, Kazan co-starred in the critically acclaimed independent film The Big Sick with Kumail Nanjiani and Holly Hunter. In 2018, Wildlife was released to great critical acclaim. Kazan co-wrote the film with her partner Paul Dano, who also directed. It stars Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal. Kazan then starred in Joel and Ethan Coen's Western anthology film, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, in the vignette "The Gal Who Got Rattled". Many critics considered her performance one of the film's highlights.

2020

In 2020, Kazan starred in the limited series The Plot Against America as Elizabeth "Bess" Levin, a version of the mother of author Philip Roth, on whose book the show was based. It debuted on HBO, and also featured Winona Ryder, Anthony Boyle, and John Turturro.

Kazan starred in Clickbait, a limited series for Netflix; and the film She Said, portraying Jodi Kantor.

Personal life

Kazan has been in a relationship with actor Paul Dano since 2007. They have two children: a daughter born in August 2018 and a son born in October 2022.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre roles

Awards and nominations

References

1. Fisher, James (July 15, 2021). Historical Dictionary of Contemporary American Theater. ISBN 9781538123027.
2. Dictionary.com – Kazan
3. Hernandez, Ernio (March 9, 2010). "CUE & A: Zoe Kazan". Playbill. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
4. "30 Under 30 – Zoe Kazan". BroadwaySpace.com. 2011. Archived from the original on August 28, 2018. Retrieved September 13, 2011. Age: 47 (09/09/83)
5. Stromboulopoulos, George (November 16, 2022). "Zoe Kazan on growing up in a family of artists".
6. ^ Gross, Terry (April 20, 2020). "For Zoe Kazan, 'Plot Against America' Is 'Scarily Prescient' And Personal". NPR. Archived from the original on April 20, 2020. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
7. Cammila Collar (2014). "Zoe Kazan Biography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved September 13, 2015.
8. ^ Brantley, Ben (January 25, 2008). "Theater Review: 'Come Back, Little Sheba'". The New York Times. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
9. "The Seagull". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved September 29, 2008.
10. Jones, Kenneth (November 13, 2008). "Zoe Kazan, Charles L. Mee, Naomi Wallace Are Among 2009 Humana Fest Writers". Playbill. Retrieved July 31, 2009.
11. "Announcing the Cast of 'Angels in America'". Signature Theatre Company. 2010.
12. "We Live Here". Manhattan Theatre Club. 2011. Archived from the original on December 17, 2013. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
13. "Ruby Sparks - Movie Trailers - iTunes". iTunes Store. Retrieved April 21, 2012.
14. Stephen Holden (July 24, 2012). "She's Everything He Wants, and Therein Lies the Problem 'Ruby Sparks,' Written by and Starring Zoe Kazan". The New York Times.
15. ^ McNulty, Charles (January 13, 2014). "Review: 'Trudy and Max in Love's' amorous, adulterous journey". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
16. Petski, Denise (December 2, 2019). "'Clickbait': Zoe Kazan, Betty Gabriel, Adrian Grenier & Phoenix Raei Join Netflix Thriller Limited Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
17. Kroll, Justin (June 7, 2021). "Carey Mulligan And Zoe Kazan To Portray The Real Life New York Times Reporters Who Broke The Harvey Weinstein Sex Scandal Story In Plan B And Annapurna Drama For Universal". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
18. Petrusich, Amanda (July 20, 2012). "Actual Couples Explore a Fantasy, the Aesthetic Sort". The New York Times. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
19. Bunbury, Stephanie (June 4, 2015). "Love and Mercy's Paul Dano relates to Brian Wilson's tortured genius". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
20. Juneau, Jen (October 25, 2018). "Paul Dano and Zoe Kazan Welcome a Daughter". People. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
21. Andaloro, Angela (November 14, 2022). "Zoe Kazan Reveals She Quietly Welcomed Her Second Baby Three Weeks Ago". People.
22. Brantley, Ben (October 10, 2006). "A Teacher Still Warping Young Minds, but Gently". The New York Times. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
23. Stasio, Marilyn (September 18, 2007). "Review: '100 Saints You Should Know'". Variety. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
24. Brantley, Ben (November 8, 2007). "A Boys' Guide to Narcotizing the Pain". The New York Times. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
25. Blank, Matthew (August 18, 2008). "Marquee value: The Seagull at the Walter Kerr Theatre". Playbill. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
26. "'Absalom' an intriguing, complex debut for Kazan". The Courier-Journal. March 14, 2009. Retrieved July 3, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
27. Als, Hilton (March 15, 2010). "The Theatre: Underhanded". The New Yorker. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
28. Dziemianowicz, Joe (October 29, 2010). "'Angels in America' review: Zachary Quinto flies high in perfect revival of Tony Kushner play". Daily News. New York. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
29. Isherwood, Charles (October 12, 2011). "Theatre Review We Live Here". The New York Times. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
30. "Clive: Theater Review". The Hollywood Reporter. February 2, 2013. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
31. Dziemianowicz, Joe (June 17, 2014). "'When We Were Young and Unafraid,' theater review". Daily News. New York. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
32. Vine, Hannah (October 4, 2016). "'Take a Look at Roundabout's Love, Love Love,'". Playbill. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
33. Clement, Olivia (October 23, 2017). "Zoe Kazan's After the Blast Opens Off-Broadway". Playbill. Retrieved November 16, 2017.

External links

[REDACTED] Media related to Zoe Kazan at Wikimedia Commons

• Zoe Kazan at IMDb
• Zoe Kazan at the Internet Broadway Database
• Zoe Kazan at the Internet Off-Broadway Database

• 1983 births
• 21st-century American actresses
• 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights
• 21st-century American women writers
• Actresses from Los Angeles
• American film actresses
• American people of English descent
• American people of German descent
• American writers of Greek descent
• American stage actresses
• American television actresses
• American women dramatists and playwrights
• Living people
• Screenwriters from California
• Writers from Los Angeles
• Yale University alumni
• Kazan family
• 21st-century American screenwriters