Abigail Breslin is an American actress that is making the transition from child to teen actress in recent roles in Little Miss Sunshine and Nim's Island. Pictures of
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Abigail Breslin
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It's not surprising that Abigail Breslin, the tiny, serious, slightly eccentric Bo in M. Night Shyamalan's Signs, comes from an acting family - her older brother is child-actor Spencer Breslin. It's clear from her amazingly strong and true performance in that movie that she is no stranger to the movie-making processFrom All Movie Guide: The younger sister of child thespian Spencer Breslin (Disney's the Kid, The Santa Clause 2, The Shaggy Dog), the dynamic young actress Abigail Breslin was born in Manhattan in 1996 and began shooting television commercials at the age of three. In 2001, Tamil-American director and Spielberg protégé M. Night Shyamalan discovered then five-year-old Breslin and brought about her movie debut by casting her in his sci-fi thriller Signs -- the tale of a farmer and pastor (Mel Gibson) who discovers a giant crop circle on his property as an early indicator of an extraterrestrial invasion. Breslin plays Bo Hess, Gibson's asthma-ridden, paranoiac daughter who is racked by the delusion that she must never drink water, for every glass in the house is now contaminated. The terror evident in this characterization was not unique. From an early age, the pint-sized Breslin became notorious for her preternatural ability to pour an extraordinary amount of emotional intensity into each role, which led to several challenging parts that Breslin pulled off with ease. The first of these turns, 2004's sadly overlooked Keane, is a harrowing drama about a drug- and alcohol-riddled schizophrenic named William Keane (Damian Lewis), obsessed with attempting to find his young daughter, who may never have even existed. Amy Ryan and Breslin play, respectively, Lynn Bedik and Kira Bedik, a mother and daughter who wander into William's life and concurrently raise, within him, a towering fear of himself and the capacity for emotional connection. {~The New York Post}'s V.A. Musetto called Breslin "a revelation." Of the many pleasures found in the sleeper comedy hit "Little Miss Sunshine" (2006), none were more endearing than the performance by child actress Abigail Breslin. As seven-year-old Olive, her unflagging enthusiasm blinded her to both the fact that her doughy, bespectacled appearance was entirely at odds with a child beauty pageant that she wished to participate in, and that her familyAbigail Kathleen Breslin (born April 14, 1996) is an American teen actress. She is one of the youngest actresses ever to be nominated for a competitive Academy Award. Breslin appeared in her first commercial when she was three years old, and in her first movie, Signs, at the age of five. Her subsequent films include Little Miss Sunshine, Nim's Island, Definitely, Maybe, My Sister's Keeper, and Zombieland. Breslin was born in New York City, New York, the daughter of Kim, who manages her career, and Michael, a telecommunications expert, computer programmer, and consultant. Breslin has two older brothers, Ryan and Spencer Breslin, who are also actors. Breslin lives in New York with her family, which her maternal grandparents have described as "very close-knit". She is named after First Lady of the United States Abigail Adams. Breslin's career began at the age of three, when she appeared in a Toys "R" Us commercial. Her first film role was in the 2002 science fiction thriller Signs, directed by M. Night Shyamalan, where she played Bo Hess, the daughter of the main character, Graham Hess (Mel Gibson). Signs garnered mostly positive reviews and was a box office success, grossing $408 worldwide.The younger sister of child thespian Spencer Breslin (Disney's the Kid, The Santa Clause 2, The Shaggy Dog), the dynamic young actress Abigail Breslin was born in Manhattan in 1996 and began shooting television commercials at the age of three. In 2001, Tamil-American director and Spielberg protégéOver coffee on a fall afternoon, Breslin is showing off her sleek black acoustic guitar in the courtyard at the Greenwich Hotel. "It's the same one Bon Jovi has," she says proudly.
The instrument signifies a new, admittedly nerve-racking frontier for the 15-year-old actress, who famously nabbed an Oscar nomination at age 10 for her precocious role in Little Miss Sunshine.
With a roster of successful movies to her name, including Nim's Island, Zombieland, My Sister's Keeper and Rango, it was indie flick Janie Jones, available on video-on-demand and expanding into more theaters this weekend, that inspired the teenager to think outside the camera lens.
"I really like that Janie kind of channels all her negativity into her songwriting," says Breslin, who plays a musically gifted child whose ex-groupie mother (Elisabeth Shue) dumps her in the lap of her bewildered father, a fallen rocker (Alessandro Nivola) in the middle of a failing tour.
"I started (singing) a few months before I did this movie," says Breslin, who took the stage to sing at the after-party of the film's New York premiere. "I'd been doing a few vocal lessons just for fun. This movie came around, and I did it more."
Two years after shooting the film, the home-schooled New York City native has parlayed her vocal breakout into a band named CABB, started with her best friend, actress Cassidy Reiff (the band's name blends Cassidy and Breslin's nickname, "Abb").
Their sound? "It's kind of like pop-rock but kind of retro at the same time," she says, naming influences ranging from Britney Spears and Fleetwood Mac to Ingrid Michaelson and Florence + The Machine."I just looked up guitar chords on YouTube, and then I taught myself the whole Taylor Swift Speak Now album." She says she memorized the chords over four days: "I barely ate. I probably lost 10 pounds. I was strung out beyond belief."
Today, she's seemingly following the Bieber blueprint: Although a label has yet to sign her, CABB's first single, Well Wishes, is up on YouTube, the band has a manager, and its members are halfway through recording a first album. Breslin says she "definitely" wants to take her music to a professional level.
Chipper and youthful despite nude platform 5-inch heels ("I'm vertically challenged" at 5-foot-1, she says), Breslin appears unconcerned about a record contract hurting her acting career.
With good reason: Breslin's next movie is the star-packed holiday flick New Year's Eve, which reunites her with director Garry Marshall (Raising Helen, Princess Diaries 2). In it, she plays Sarah Jessica Parker's belligerent daughter, who is aiming for a first kiss on the big night. Parker "is just so nice," Breslin says. "We kind of bonded over American Idol on set. We're both huge American Idol people
Abigail Breslin
