Abigail Breslin won over the hearts of moviegoers with her Oscar-nominated breakthrough role
as Olive Hoover in 2006's Little Miss Sunshine. Her career's still going strong, so let's
take a look at what she's been up to in the years since.
After wowing critics everywhere with Little Miss Sunshine, Breslin tried her hand at acting
on the stage. In 2010, she starred in the Broadway revival of The Miracle Worker in
the lead role of Helen Keller. At the time, she told Playbill the experience felt surreal.
As she put it,
"Heading towards the theatre, it's hard to believe I'm really on Broadway! This is the
ultimate New York experience."
Alas, critics weren't that kind towards the show, although they did have praise for the
young actress, with The Hollywood Reporter noting,
"Breslin [...] well portrays Helen's feral rebelliousness in the play's early sections
and is deeply touching as her character's bond with her teacher grows."
Breslin returned to theatrical work in 2017 for the Off-Broadway run of All the Fine Boys,
but this time, reviewers weren't so kind to the play or her. The Hollywood Reporter didn't
mince words as it declared,
"From its trivial opening scene to its melodramatic conclusion, All the Fine Boys feels shallow
and superficial."
For her part, Breslin told TheaterMania that the stage felt like home as she noted,
"I grew up in New York so I was really away from the scene of L.A. and the industry."
Following Little Miss Sunshine, Breslin managed to maintain her status as a standout supporting
actress. As she was still a kid, she was most often cast as the cute daughter in films like
No Reservations and Definitely, Maybe. But by no means did she fade into the background!
Instead, she was witty and wise beyond her years as she solidified her status as someone
worth paying attention to for years to come.
It's no surprise then that as Breslin aged, she reestablished herself as a leading lady.
She began that jump in earnest in 2008, when she starred in both Nim's Island and Kit Kittredge:
An American Girl. Although both films were only moderately successful at the box office,
the latter film was well received by critics and fans alike. It's no exaggeration to say
that they demonstrated that even as a preteen, Breslin had staying power!
Breslin likes taking risks in her career, and she's not too concerned about what others
think about her. 2009 saw her next big breakout moment in a new genre when she was cast in
the horror-comedy Zombieland opposite Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg, and Woody Harrelson.
A slew of other roles followed, and then in 2015, Breslin had her TV breakthrough playing
Chanel #5 on Fox's slasher comedy Scream Queens.
The actress has also tried her hand at thrillers. In 2013, she starred opposite Halle Berry
in The Call, and she followed that up with 2015's zombie drama Maggie alongside Arnold
Schwarzenegger. Neither of those popped off into much of a hit, but Breslin remained undaunted.
In 2017, she tried something new again when she was cast as Frances "Baby" Houseman in
the TV movie remake of Dirty Dancing. Although fans of the original were skeptical, Breslin
wasn't too fussed. Although, she did have one concern.
"I'm not a dancer, I'm not graceful, I can't even walk in a straight line. 'Wow, she's
so poised.' Like, nobody's ever said that about me."
Alas, the risk didn't pay off especially well. Rolling Stone, for one, proclaimed,
"[The] remake attempts to be all things to all people, and ends up being nothing to anybody."
As Breslin's career began to take off, she had the opportunity to work alongside a slew
of A-list actors, but there was one in particular who stood out above the rest: Meryl Streep.
The two worked together on 2013's August: Osage County, and the experience was awe-inspiring,
to say the least.
"When you eat meat, you ingest an animal's fear."
"Ingest what? Its fur?" "Fear!"
"Thought she said…"
Breslin opened up about this role of a lifetime to Entertainment Weekly by admitting,
"Working with Meryl Streep was a huge thing for me. She's not the type of person who will
come up and give you advice or tell you what to do, she's just so professional on set.
She's always there off-camera for other actors and she just gives 110 percent. To me, that's
the kind of actor I want to be."
Breslin wasn't just in the presence of one megastar, as the film also boasted the talents
of Julia Roberts. Speaking with the Independent about the flick's star power, Breslin confessed,
"It was pretty intimidating, very nerve-racking at first. They're like people that you've
looked up to your whole life and then you have to, like, sit around a table and act
with them. But once I'd met everybody and realized that they were so nice and really
welcoming and everything, it was much easier. They were really good to me."
In 2014, Breslin tried her hand at something new once again, as she entered the music biz
with the release of a song called "You Suck." It was reportedly about 5 Seconds Of Summer's
Michael Clifford. Speaking about her foray into music with Teen Vogue, Breslin explained,
"I started writing and singing and taught myself guitar when I was about 13 after filming
Janie Jones. It's pretty easy while I'm filming because I'll bring the guitar with me, and
when I have downtime I'll play. I get ideas throughout the day and I'll record them into
my phone and figure it out that night."
In retrospect, this venture may not have been the best move, as critics were less than kind.
Bustle went so far as to call "You Suck," quote, "tragically bad and weird." Fans of
Clifford also voiced their disapproval. The hashtag #YouTriedAbigail began trending on
Twitter, and Breslin even received death threats, but luckily, she was able to tune out the
haters. Also, it seems she didn't take it too personally. Speaking with Refinery29 years
later in 2019, she noted,
"Oh, people hated it. You can call a spade a spade."
Unlike many former child stars, Breslin has managed to avoid the all-too-common pitfalls
of growing up with fame and fortune, and that's all thanks to her mom, Kim. The young actress
got candid with InStyle in 2018 and revealed that her mother has helped keep her grounded
and strong. She explained,
"She taught me from a very, very, very young age to stand up for myself and to not feel
like my opinion didn't hold value. She was like, 'Always say what you're thinking.'"
But it wasn't just her mom who played a vital role, as her entire family helped enforce
a normal childhood. Breslin told Entertainment Weekly in 2015,
"When I wrapped on the set and I'd go home, it was always a set-free zone, like we couldn't
talk about work, we just talked about real normal life things. And I think that helped
a lot at keeping me from being weird. I mean I am, but, you know, they tried."
Growing up in New York, as opposed to Los Angeles, also helped keep Breslin level-headed.
As she told EW,
"I think because there's so many different people here and so many different things going
on, it's not all about making movies and making TV shows."
Audiences were first introduced to Breslin when she was just five years old in M. Night
Shyamalan's 2002 sci-fi horror film, Signs.
"There's a monster outside my room. Can I have a glass of water?"
It's no surprise, then, that many people immediately picture a young child when they hear Breslin's
name. But she's all grown up now, and she's perfectly okay with that. She just wishes
everyone else was, too. Speaking with Refinery29 in 2019, a then-23-year-old Breslin joked,
"Every article since I was 12 has been, 'She's all grown up,' and I'm like, 'When am I all,
all, all grown up?' I'm not sure. That's what I'm gonna have on my tombstone: All grown
up, like all the way [...] It's called puberty. It's a thing that happens to people, but some
people really want me to just stay 9 years old forever."
While Breslin doesn't really mind this perception, it has put a lot of pressure on her. She realized
early on that her mistakes are public mistakes. As she told Refinery29,
"When I was younger, there's no way I could have gone to a party and gotten a picture
of me holding a beer in my hand. If I do it, I'm another child star gone down the wrong
path. It's been that way since I was 14. I mean, I'll take it, but I am almost 24. I
have been all grown up for quite a bit now, guys."
Abigail Breslin isn't here for your criticism. In 2017, she defended her headline-making
friendship with Tiffany Trump after sharing a photo of the two at a birthday party. As
the hate messages poured in, Breslin took to Twitter to defend President Donald Trump's
youngest daughter, writing,
"ALRIGHT Everyone commenting mean s--- on my last insta, I have known Tiff for years
she's a beautiful soul and regardless of [your] political views, do not take it out on her
it is completely unfair."
She added on Instagram,
"To everyone who's being horrible and disgusting to me [right now], I didn't vote for Trump.
It's none of anyone's business, but I didn't. However, it is honestly disgusting of people
to be so cruel about Tiff who is a wonderful and kind person. If you're judging me for
hanging out with someone I've known for years at our friend's [birthday] party, you need
to reevaluate your life."
That wasn't the first, or the last, time that Breslin would proudly shut down Internet trolls.
In January 2020, she didn't hold back when she unleashed on body shamers, as she declared
on Twitter,
"Dear [people] who call females, in my field [myself included] 'fat'; To quote 1 [...] man
'did she go on the eat everything diet for [Zombieland 2]?' Sir, did [you] go on the
regurgitated, unrealistic, body shaming culture diet? Cuz...it's showing. P.s. Go f--- yourself."
One perk of being all grown up is getting into serious relationships, and Abigail Breslin
has been getting serious. While she's been able to keep her private life private for
the most part, she hasn't been able to completely hide her love for a fellow named Ira Kunyansky.
The pair have reportedly been dating since April 2017, and throughout that time, Breslin
has gushed about her man on Instagram on several occasions.
In 2018, she revealed just how sweet Kunyansky is by sharing a photo of herself hugging a
gigantic teddy bear along with the caption,
"I asked my boyfriend for a teddy bear for Valentine’s Day and he got me the teddy
bear of all teddy bears and couldn’t wait until Valentine’s Day to give it to me...
so basically he won Valentine’s Day this year. Even tho now I will probably cuddle
this bear more than him now... jk (maybe)"
The couple have also walked the occasional red carpet together, and in June 2019, Breslin
shared a snap of herself sitting on her boyfriend's lap, along with the gushing caption,
"Legit don't know what I'd do without you."
That's just too sweet.
When it was announced that the original cast of Zombieland would be returning for the 2019
sequel, Double Tap, Abigail Breslin's transformation from kid to young adult almost broke the Internet.
As one Twitter user noted following the release of the film's trailer,
"Only Abigail Breslin looks to have aged. That's nuts. Hell, Jesse [Eisenberg] looks
like he just stepped off the set of the first one."
Meanwhile, another user posted a before-and-after shot of Breslin and jokingly asked, quote,
"Feel Old Yet?"
"Little Rock has probably changed the most, as have I, because I myself in real life and
Little Rock went through puberty."
Yes, Little Miss Sunshine has grown up, and her on-screen roles are growing up with her.
In July 2019, Variety confirmed that Breslin would be joining Matt Damon in Stillwater,
which is about an oil-rig roughneck from Oklahoma who travels to France to exonerate his estranged
daughter from prison. In February 2020, reports of another major role surfaced when it was
revealed that Breslin was supposedly being considered for the part of Jill Valentine
in the big screen reboot of Resident Evil. No doubt about it, Abigail Breslin's future
looks bright indeed!
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