{"id":481502,"date":"2026-10-01T10:44:22","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T10:44:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/481502\/"},"modified":"2026-10-01T10:44:22","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T10:44:22","slug":"east-of-eden-writer-zoe-kazan-recalls-historic-childhood-home-in-l-a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/481502\/","title":{"rendered":"‘East of Eden’ Writer Zoe Kazan Recalls Historic Childhood Home in L.A."},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe Big Sick\u201d star Zoe Kazan has ties to Hollywood<\/a> that go back generations, and the multihyphenate recently shared some insight on the homes she’s lived in throughout her life\u2014from her formative childhood years to her time now as a mom. <\/p>\n

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal<\/a> ahead of the premiere of \u201cEast of Eden\u201d\u2014the Netflix miniseries Kazan wrote and is a co-showrunner for\u2014she recalled the most formative details of her childhood, where she grew up surrounded by family members who are influential in film.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost of the adults I knew growing up in Los Angeles<\/a> were connected to the movies, so working in Hollywood seemed normal to me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Kazan\u2019s mother, Robin Swicord, is a screenwriter and director, whose impressive resume includes \u201cThe Curious Case of Benjamin Button,\u201d the 1994 adaptation of \u201cLittle Women,\u201d and \u201cMemoirs of a Geisha.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her father, Nicholas Kazan, is a screenwriter, producer, and director whose list of notable films includes \u201cReversal of Fortune,\u201d \u201cBicentennial Man,\u201d and \u201cMatilda.\u201d And his father was honored Broadway<\/a> and Hollywood director Elia Kazan, who directed the James Dean<\/a>\u2013led 1955 film adaptation of \u201cEast of Eden.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zoe Kazan is the daughter of notable directors and screenwriters, Nicholas Kazan and Robin Swicord. Bruce Glikas\/WireImage<\/p>\n

\u201cBy my teens, I understood who my grandfather was to the world,\u201d Kazan shared. \u201cTo me, he was just a member of the family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elia Kazan died in 2003, and his granddaughter said she thought about him and \u201ceven dreamed about him\u201d while working on the miniseries, even though she chose not to rewatch his 1955 film until she had finished writing.<\/p>\n

Although their respective adaptations are quite different, both feature an impressive cast. The 2026 Netflix series is stacked with talented actors, including Florence Pugh, Mike Faist, and Christopher Abbott<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe 1955 film took on only a small part of the book, and I think it\u2019s a fairly loose adaptation,\u201d Zoe Kazan told People magazine<\/a>. She added that the \u201cintergenerational aspect\u201d of the story is what she loves most, an appropriate answer given her upbringing.<\/p>\n

WIth strong familial connections to the industry, Kazan shared what her home life was like growing up, describing the home she was raised in.<\/p>\n

Kazan recalls her childhood in Los Angeles, where she spent time with family and friends in the film industry as a child. Grant Buchanan\/Dave Benett\/WireImage<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in an old gray-blue house in Santa Monica, CA<\/a>, that dated back to the late 1800s. From the street, it looked like a modest Craftsman, but inside it felt bigger,\u201d Kazan explained. \u201cMy parents bought it in 1983, when my mother was pregnant with me. Over the years, I watched them slowly make it nice.\u201d<\/p>\n

California<\/a> wasn\u2019t the only place Kazan called home as a child.<\/p>\n

The family also spent summers in Washington<\/a> state, because as she shared, her parents wanted Kazan and her younger sister, actor and writer Maya Kazan, to \u201cexperience more than just living in L.A.\u201d<\/p>\n

These days, Kazan resides in Brooklyn<\/a> with her partner, actor-director Paul Dano, whose work includes \u201cLittle Miss Sunshine\u201d and \u201cThe Batman.\u201d<\/p>\n

The couple, who share two young children, moved into their New York<\/a> abode \u201c10 days before\u201d welcoming their second baby in 2022.<\/p>\n

The “East of Eden” Netflix miniseries stars Florence Pugh, Christopher Abbott, and Mike Faist.Netflix<\/p>\n

Kazan noted that her current home is aged, which she appreciates.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love living in an older space<\/a>,\u201d she said. \u201cI feel like we\u2019re stewards, not owners.\u201d<\/p>\n

The couple recently splurged on \u201ctwo bookshelves added in recesses on either side\u201d of their bed, and Kazan is confident they \u201cwon\u2019t have trouble filling them.\u201d<\/p>\n

But her favorite items at home aren\u2019t necessarily high-priced finds. The mom of two also told the Journal that the \u201ccoolest\u201d thing in her abode is \u201ca $2 painting of a leopard dangling from a branch\u201d that is currently displayed by their front door.<\/p>\n

Cheaper still is her favorite spot at home: the living room floor where she likes to lay and \u201cenjoy the quiet\u201d when she gets the rare opportunity to spend time alone.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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