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Steve Zahn

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Biography

Making an art out of portraying dysfunctional losers and likable freaks, Steve Zahn worked for years before getting his due as one of the most engaging and unconventionally gifted actors in Hollywood. Hailing from Marshall, MN, where he was born in 1968, Zahn was first introduced to improvisational acting in high school. Following a year at Gustavus-Adolphus College, he was accepted at the prestigious American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, MA, where he trained for two years. After completing his tenure there, Zahn settled in Hoboken, NJ, and tried to support himself with acting in New York, working a variety of odd jobs on the side. He found work in various theater productions, including a 13-month road tour of Bye, Bye Birdie, which provided both steady employment and an introduction to his wife, who was a dancer in the musical.

Zahn's break came when he was cast in Sophistry, a play that also starred Ethan Hawke. His performance was seen by Ben Stiller, who offered him a role in his upcoming film, Reality Bites. Zahn took the part of Sammy, Winona Ryder's amiable, slightly conflicted gay friend. The film, which was released in 1994, was actually Zahn's second feature, the first being the 1993 drama Rain Without Thunder. Reality Bites met with relative success and helped to jump-start not only Zahn's career, but those of Ben Stiller and Janeane Garofalo, as well. Zahn proceeded to take a significant role in Eric Bogosian's play SubUrbia and his work in the production led to his casting in the 1995 submarine thriller Crimson Tide, starring Denzel Washington. The following year, he won a leading role in Tom Hanks' That Thing You Do! and subsequently re-created his SubUrbia role for the play's film adaptation, which also featured Giovanni Ribisi and Parker Posey.

In 1998, Hollywood began to take notice of the actor, as he was featured in four different films. Three of them, You've Got Mail, Out of Sight, and The Object of My Affection, proved to be box-office successes; the other one, Safe Men, was released into general obscurity. The following year, Zahn made an appearance in the romantic comedy Forces of Nature, co-starring Ben Affleck and Sandra Bullock, and had a leading role in Happy, Texas, which was released at Sundance. For his performance as a con artist forced to play gay, Zahn won a special acting award at the festival, a much-deserved token of appreciation for an actor as underrated as he is original. ~ Rebecca Flint, All Movie Guide

Filmography

Shattered Glass (2003) .... Adam L. Penenberg
Daddy Day Care (2003)
National Security (2003) .... Hank
Stuart Little 2 (2002) (voice) .... Monty
Riding in Cars with Boys (2001) .... Raymond Hasek
Chelsea Walls (2001) .... Ross
... aka Chelsea Hotel (2001)
Joy Ride (2001) .... Fuller Thomas
... aka Road Kill (2002) (UK)
... aka Roadkill (2002) (Australia)
Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001) (voice) .... Archie
... aka DR.2 (2001) (USA: promotional abbreviation)
... aka DR2 (2001) (USA: promotional abbreviation)
Saving Silverman (2001) .... Wayne Lefessier
... aka Evil Woman (2001) (Europe: English title) (UK) (USA: working title)
... aka Evil Women (2001) (Australia)
Chain of Fools (2000) .... Kresk
Hamlet (2000/I) .... Rosencrantz
Stuart Little (1999) (voice) .... Monty, the Mouth
Freak Talks About Sex (1999) .... Freak
... aka Blowin' Smoke (1999) (USA: DVD title)
Forces of Nature (1999) .... Alan
Happy, Texas (1999) .... Wayne Wayne Wayne Jr., aka David
You've Got Mail (1998) .... George Pappas
Safe Men (1998) .... Eddie
Out of Sight (1998) .... Glenn Michaels
Object of My Affection, The (1998) .... Frank Hanson
"From the Earth to the Moon" (1998) (mini) TV Series .... Astronaut Elliott See
Subway Stories: Tales from the Underground (1997) (TV) .... Tucker (segment "The 5:24")
SubUrbia (1996) .... Buff
... aka subUrbi@ (1996)
That Thing You Do! (1996) .... Lenny Haise
Race the Sun (1996) .... Hans Kooiman
"Picture Windows" (1995) (mini) TV Series .... Allan (segment "Armed Response")
... aka "Picture Windows: Language of the Heart" (1995) (mini) (USA)
Crimson Tide (1995) .... William Barnes
Reality Bites (1994) .... Sammy Gray
Rain Without Thunder (1992) .... Jeremy Tanner

Links

Contact

2372 Veteran Avenue #102
Los Angeles, CA 90064
USA