Zoe Kazan

Zoe Kazan

actress

interview by SABINE HELLER
portrait by TODD COLE

 

With the labels playwright, screenwriter, and film, television, and Broadway actor already under her belt, Zoe Kazan seems immune to restriction. Born in Los Angeles to screenwriter parents — and the granddaughter of the director Elia Kazan — Zoe hails from a line of Hollywood fixtures. While a student at Yale University, she was tapped to join the Manuscript Society — a notoriously selective club — and began work on her first play. Zoe recently starred opposite her boyfriend Paul Dano in Ruby Sparks, a film she wrote. Despite these accomplishments, it’s clear the 28-year-old is just getting started.

SABINE HELLER — What were dinners like with two successful screenwriter parents?
ZOE KAZAN — My parents insisted on family dinner every night. Other stuff was more particular to “show business” — showing us pre-Code…