When actress, singer, producer, and all-around media darling Zooey Deschanel first burst onto our screens she was quite young. She played Mandy, an aspiring musician who gets her big break at Clear Channel by kissing their CEO in his office.
While filming this scene with Ben Affleck (the main character) back in 2005, he noticed something about her performance that needed tweaking. He asked for her to do it again, but this time adding some intensity. The next day she received a call telling her she got the part!
Since then she has starred in hit films such as New Year’s Eve, All I Want For Christmas Is You, The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, The Vicious Circle, The Batman, It’s Complicated, Now you’re saying my name, The Pact, My Life As A Cartoon, and Death Note. Not only is she well known for her acting skills, but also her catchy music and popular TV shows like The Simpsons and New Girl.
Her list of collaborations includes actors, musicians, and other famous people. Her favorite genre of movie is a comedy, so it makes sense that she loves working with comedians. Many have noted how funny she is when talking or interacting with others, which helps in creating fun scenes.
Overall, most agree that Zooey is a talented actor with a lot of charisma.
As a little girl, she appeared in several TV shows, including an episode of The Brady Bunch where she played Chris’s sister.
She also had a small role as Nancy in the 1981 film Dirty Harry (in which her character says “bravo” at the end), along with some guest appearances on ER and others.
Her first major break came when she landed the lead in 1998′s Beside Dawn, a movie about two high school seniors who fall for each other five years later.
While most people know her for her work as an actress, she has also been very successful outside of show business. Aside from acting, she is well-known for her philanthropy and motivational speaking career.
Zooey was born Zoe Ann Descharnes in Brooklyn, NY to parents who both worked in entertainment. Her father worked as a sound engineer and music producer while her mother was a singer. Both parents are now divorced with Zoé living mostly alone since high school.
She grew up in several cities across America before settling down in Hackensack, NJ when she was 17 years old. It was there that she graduated high school and began attending NYU.
It was at this university where she met Milla Jovovich, the famous actor, and filmmaker. The two became close friends and eventually roommates!
Since then, Zooey has seen success as a musician, writer, and entrepreneur.
Even though she’s considered to be very famous now, not too many people know how old actress Zooey Deschanel is. Most sources say that she was around twenty-two when she got her first big break as an actor with Joseph Gordon-Levitt in 2005’s The Happening.
She played his girlfriend in the movie!
That same year, she appeared in another hit film called All I Want For Christmas Is Your Love. In it, she plays a struggling singer who falls for an older musician (played by Ryan Gosling).
The always-charming Deschanel has kept up her career by staying in top shape, investing in new skills and strategies, and constantly reevaluating her priorities.
Since she first broke onto the scene as Mandy Patinkin’s daughter in 2001’s (500) Days of Summer, Deschanel has maintained a steady flow of work. Since then, she has starred in such acclaimed films as New Year’s Eve, Happy-Sad Pictures of Kids, Love Happens, All I Know Is What He Does Next, This Is Our City, Night Moves, Death Note, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Paul Giamatti's directorial debut Take Two, and most recently, Zack and Miri Make A Porno.
These are not small or casual roles for Descartes! While some may consider her typecast, she sees it more like a challenge.
"I love doing those characters," she told Vulture. "It kind of forces you to grow and do different things."
And she doesn't shy away from tough scenes either. She relished one recent opportunity to show off her intensity.
In 2017's The Hustle, Deschanel plays an alcoholic movie producer who gets into a bit of trouble after hitting on another woman at a party. When that other woman reports her, everything goes south very quickly.
While not as well-known as some of her contemporaries, such as Ben Stiller or Jake Gyllenhaal, she has nonetheless garnered her fan base due to her starring role in the hit Fox comedy series The New Girl.
The show follows workplace rookie Nia Vdovic (played by Deschanel) who moves into an apartment with her best friend, Eliza Bishop (Caroline Rhea). Both women have been hired as interns at Wunderland Laboratories, a tech start-up run by Hugh Laurie (the voice of Clampett from “Calvin and Hobbes”).
Deschanel's character, The New Girl, frequently makes references to how much she loves watching TV shows that feature large groups of people interacting with each other. This piques our lead protagonist's interest, leading to their first meeting.
She also mentions having a roommate back home, which reminds him about his upcoming trip abroad. They both realize they are looking for new roommates at the same time, so they make your acquaintance of yours truly!
In addition to winning over your heart through comedic timing and witty banter, Deschanel is just plain fun to be around. You will probably find yourself sharing screen time with her at various events, making it easy to connect with her outside of work.
Her friendship skills do not stop there, however.
While not as well known as some of her contemporaries, such as Emma Stone or Liam Payne, she has built an impressive career for herself over the past decade. Since she first appeared in 2006’s The Darjeeling Limited, where she played a struggling artist trying to make it big in New York City, she has starred in eight more films that have all received at least mixed reviews.
Most recently, she can be seen playing Meryl Streep's daughter in the biographical comedy-drama The Hustle. In this case, however, she is billed above Meryl Streep!
She also hosted Saturday Night Live twice, both times winning several awards for her performance. Her other notable appearances include voicing characters in various animated movies and shows, most notably her iconic role as Mortimer Crash from Beethoven TV.
Most people know Zooey as the cheeky, quirky best friend of Benjamin Button’s character Sam, but she has also lent her acting chops to some pretty significant films.
She made her feature film debut at age 19 in 2007′s All About Me, playing the part that earned her an MTV Award for Best Breakout Performance. Her next two roles were even more impressive – she starred opposite Tom Hanks in The Money Pit and 2005 she played Annette Funicello in Beaches!
Since then, she has racked up quite a list of achievements. These include starring alongside Johnny Depp in 2012′s 21 Jump Street, voicing the lead role of Mortimer Mouse in 2017′s Happy Death Day 2, and portraying FBI agent Lindsay Novak in the almost-franchise movie The Heat.
Her other notable appearances include Fox’s New Girl, CBS’ Mom, and now (almost) eight seasons of The WB/Netflix series Bae.
When actress Zooey Deschanel almost got fired for her role as “Dani” in the hit movie Almost Famous, she knew she had to do something dramatic.
She made up an excuse about having a stomach ache and left work early, which was perfect since they were shooting outside!
That night, she called her agent and told him that she wanted to drop out of filming and return home. He warned her not to because it would be too expensive but she still decided to go through with it.
It took several months before people realized what happened, but when they did, everyone praised her for sticking up for the film and herself by refusing to shoot more than one day.
