Abigail Kathleen Breslin (born April 14, 1996) is an American actress. She is one of the youngest actresses ever to be nominated for an Academy Award.
Breslin appeared in her first commercial when she was only three years old, and in her first film, Signs, at the age of five. Her subsequent films include Little Miss Sunshine, Nim's Island, Definitely, Maybe, My Sister's Keeper, Zombieland and Rango.
In 2009, Breslin appeared in My Sister's Keeper, where she played the role of Anna Fitzgerald, a young girl who was conceived to be a donor for her sister, Kate, who suffers from leukemia. Elle and Dakota Fanning were slated to play the roles of Anna and Kate respectively; however, Dakota refused to shave her head for the role, so she and Elle were replaced by Sofia Vassilieva and Breslin. My Sister's Keeper received mixed reviews but was a financial success, grossing $95 million worldwide. James Berardinelli wrote that Breslin and Vassilieva "display a natural bond one might expect from sisters, and there's no hint of artifice or overacting in either performance". Also in 2009, Breslin appeared in the horror comedy Zombieland as Little Rock. Director Ruben Fleischer said that "the dream was always to get Abigail Breslin" for the role. The film received positive reviews and was successful at the box office, grossing $102 million worldwide.
With previews beginning in February 2010, she made her Broadway theatre debut as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker at the Circle in the Square Theatre. Breslin has said that she was honored to play Keller, who is one of her "biggest heroes". The Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts, an advocacy group for blind and deaf actors criticized the play's producers for not casting a deaf or blind actor in the role. Lead producer David Richenthal defended the decision, stating that he needed a well-known actress: "It’s simply naïve to think that in this day and age, you’ll be able to sell tickets to a play revival solely on the potential of the production to be a great show or on the potential for an unknown actress to give a breakthrough performance." Vision-impaired actress Kyra Siegel was cast as Breslin's understudy. Breslin's performance was praised by critics; Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter wrote that she "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". Ticket sales for the play, however, were considered disappointing, and the show closed in April 2010.
In September 2009, Breslin filmed in Des Moines, Iowa, playing the title character in the film Janie Jones: a 13-year old girl who is abandoned by her former-groupie mother (Elisabeth Shue), and informs Ethan Brand (Alessandro Nivola), a fading rock star, that she is his daughter. The film premiered at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival. In 2011, Breslin voiced Priscilla, a cactus mouse in the animated comedy Rango, and appeared in the romantic comedy New Year's Eve.
In December 2011, it was confirmed that she will appear in the film adaptation of Orson Scott Card's novel, Ender's Game.
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