Abigail Breslin

She has two older brothers, Ryan Breslin (b. 1985) and Spencer Breslin (b. 1992), who are also actors.

The Breslin siblings were raised in New York in a "very close-knit" household.

Her father was of Jewish heritage.

Breslin is named after Abigail Adams, the first Second Lady and second First Lady of the United States.

Breslin's career began at the age of three when she appeared in a Toys "R" Us commercial.

Abigail Breslin (born April 14, 1996) is an American actress.

Her first acting role was in Signs (2002), 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 million worldwide.

Breslin's performance in the film was praised by critics.

David Ansen of Newsweek wrote that she and co-star Rory Culkin gave "terrifically natural, nuanced performances".

In 2004, she appeared in Raising Helen, in which she and her brother Spencer played siblings, but the film fared poorly.

Breslin had a small role in The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement.

In the independent film Keane, she played Kira Bedik, a young girl who reminds the mentally disturbed protagonist William Keane (Damian Lewis) of his missing, abducted daughter.

Keane had a limited theatrical release and grossed only $394,390 worldwide but it received positive reviews and Breslin's performance was praised by critics.

Meghan Keane of The New York Sun wrote that "the scenes between Mr. Lewis and the charmingly fragile Kira, winningly played by Ms. Breslin, bring a captivating humanity to the film".

She rose to prominence with the comedy-drama film Little Miss Sunshine (2006), for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at age 10.

Breslin's breakthrough role was in the 2006 comedy-drama Little Miss Sunshine, where she played Olive Hoover, a beauty pageant contestant, the youngest in a dysfunctional family on a road trip.

She was cast at the age of six, years before filming was started.

Her co-stars, Greg Kinnear and Alan Arkin, both stated that they were "astounded by her seriousness of purpose during shooting."

Little Miss Sunshine was a critical and commercial success, grossing $100 million worldwide.

Her performance was highly praised; Claudia Puig of USA Today wrote that, "If Olive had been played by any other little girl, she would not have affected us as mightily as [she] did."

She received nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the fourth youngest actress to be nominated in that category.

Breslin went on to establish herself as a mainstream actress with roles in the films No Reservations (2007), Nim's Island (2008), Definitely, Maybe (2008), My Sister's Keeper (2009), Zombieland (2009), Rango (2011), The Call (2013), August: Osage County (2013), Maggie (2015), Freak Show (2017), Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), and Stillwater (2021).

Although Jennifer Hudson won the Oscar, Breslin co-presented with actor Jaden Smith at the 79th Academy Awards on February 25, 2007.

Breslin was part of the Disney Year of a Million Dreams celebration.

Annie Leibovitz photographed her as Fira from Disney Fairies with Dame Julie Andrews as the Blue Fairy from Pinocchio.

On October 27, 2007, Breslin made her stage debut in the play Right You Are (If You Think You Are) in New York City at the Guggenheim Museum starring in an ensemble cast, including Cate Blanchett, Dianne Wiest, Natalie Portman and Peter Sarsgaard.

In 2007, Breslin was ranked No. 8 in Forbes magazine's list of "Young Hollywood's Top-Earning Stars", having earned $1.5 million in 2006.

Breslin next appeared in the 2007 romantic comedy No Reservations, playing the niece of master chef Kate Armstrong (Catherine Zeta-Jones).

The film garnered mostly negative reviews but was successful at the box office, grossing $92 million worldwide.

Roger Ebert wrote that Breslin "has the stuff to emerge as a three-dimensional kid, if she weren't employed so resolutely as a pawn."

In 2007, she also starred in Definitely, Maybe, as the daughter of a recently divorced father (played by Ryan Reynolds); the film garnered generally favorable reviews, with Steven Rea of The Philadelphia Inquirer writing that Breslin is "alarmingly cute – but she backs the cuteness up with serious acting instinct."

In 2008, Breslin starred with Jodie Foster in the film Nim's Island as Nim Rusoe, a young girl who lives on a remote tropical island.

Nim's Island received mixed reviews but was successful financially, grossing $100 million worldwide.

In 2008, she appeared in Kit Kittredge: An American Girl as the title role.

The film was based on the American Girl line of dolls, books, and accessories of which Breslin is a fan.

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl garnered favorable reviews and grossed $17 million at the box office.

Breslin's performance in the film was praised by critics; Joe Morgenstern of The Wall Street Journal wrote that she "carries the event-stuffed story with unflagging grace."

Between 2015 and 2016, she had a starring role in the horror-comedy series Scream Queens on Fox, her first regular role in a television series.

She was born in New York City, the daughter of Kim (née Walsh), a talent manager, and Michael Breslin, a telecommunications expert, computer programmer, and consultant.