Fifteen years ago, an independent movie about a family road trip unexpectedly made a big splash critically and at the box office, and that was thanks in big part to its young star. On July 26, 2006, Little Miss Sunshine starring Abigail Breslin hit theaters. In the dark comedy, Breslin stars as Olive, a child pageant hopeful with an eccentric family played by Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear, Paul Dano, Steve Carell, and Alan Arkin. The movie was a huge success, making $101 million on a $8 million budget. It also won two Academy Awards—Best Supporting Actor for Arkin and Best Original Screenplay for Michael Arndt—and was nominated for two more: Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress for Breslin, who was only 10 years old.
Now, because time flies, Little Miss Sunshine is 15 years old, and Breslin is 25. In honor of the movie's anniversary and her upcoming role, here's a look at what Breslin is up to now.
RELATED: Child Star Taylor Momsen Quit Hollywood 10 Years Ago. See Her Now.
She was already acting before Little Miss Sunshine.
Buena Vista PicturesBreslin made a name for herself with her adorable and hilarious role Little Miss Sunshine, but she was already appearing in major films before that. Her first movie was the 2002 M. Night Shyamalan thriller Signs, in which she starred alongside Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, and Rory Culkin. She then appeared in the movies Raising Helen and The Princess Diaries 2 and the shows What I Like About You and Law & Order: SVU, among other projects, prior to the release of Little Miss Sunshine.
She's very much still in the business.
Tinseltown / Shutterstock.comBreslin has acted consistently since starring in Little Miss Sunshine. She's appeared in the films No Reservations, Zombieland, New Year’s Eve, August: Osage County, and Ender’s Game, to name a few. She also starred for two seasons on the TV series Scream Queens.
For more celebrity news delivered right to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
She has a new movie coming out.
Michael Loccisano/WireImage via Getty ImagesBreslin stars in the drama Stillwater (out July 30) along with Matt Damon. Breslin plays an American student studying in France, who has been charged with murdering her girlfriend, in a story similar to the Amanda Knox case. Damon plays her father, who moves from the U.S. to France to try to help free her. The movie premiered at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this month.
She's also a singer.
Jacopo Raule/GC Images via Getty ImagesIn addition to acting, Breslin has also released music. Her singing career started with the 2011 movie Janie Jones, which is about a rock star who meets his estranged daughter. Songs performed by Breslin were featured on the soundtrack. She went on to release several other songs on her own over the years, and just recently released a new single titled "Steve McQueen." In a post on Instagram, she wrote that the new song is "about a relationship you can never quite grasp, one that you can’t ever hold onto for very long because it slips through your fingers like sand... but you appreciate the fleeting moment in which it existed."
She looks back on Little Miss Sunshine fondly.
Fox Searchlight PicturesIn a recent interview with Yahoo!, Breslin looked back on her time making Little Miss Sunshine and said that she has "amazing memories from that whole experience." About Olive's big dance scene at the end of the film, the actor said, "I had a lot of fun doing that, getting to work with everybody on it. It was just a blast. And I think I was so young I didn’t have any insecurities yet or anything. That took about a day and a half, I think. I just remember having such a fun time doing it."
RELATED: See the Kids From Jurassic Park Almost 30 Years Later.
