Zazie Beetz
Beetz at the 2018 San Diego Comic Con
Born
Zazie Olivia Beetz

(1991-06-01) June 1, 1991 (age 32)[1]
Berlin, Germany
Nationality
  • Germany
  • United States
EducationSkidmore College (BA)
OccupationActress
Years active2013–present
Spouse
​
(m. 2023)​

Zazie Olivia Beetz (/zəˈsiː ˈbeɪts/ zə-SEE BAYTS; German: [zaˈsiː ˈbeːts];[2][3] born June 1, 1991) is a German-American actress. She is best known for her role in the FX comedy-drama series Atlanta (2016–2022), for which she received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She starred in the Netflix anthology series Easy (2016–2019) and currently voices Amber Bennett in the adult animated superhero series Invincible (2021–present).

In film, Beetz has appeared in the disaster film Geostorm (2017) and has played the Marvel Comics character Domino in the superhero film Deadpool 2 (2018) and Arthur Fleck/Joker's neighbor Sophie in the psychological thriller Joker (2019).[4] She also voiced as Diane Foxington in the heist animated movie The Bad Guys.

Early life and career

Zazie Olivia Beetz[5][6] was born in Berlin in 1991.[1][7][8] Her father is a German cabinet maker who emigrated to the United States in 1990 after the fall of the Berlin Wall,[9][10] and her mother is an African-American social worker from New York.[10][11] Her parents separated when she was very young.[7][10] Beetz was named after the title character in the Raymond Queneau novel Zazie in the Metro. The pronunciation, with [s], follows the German-dubbed version of the 1960 film adaptation of the novel.[12][13] She has a younger brother named Justin.[14]

Beetz attended preschool in Berlin and kindergarten in New York City before moving with her family there more permanently at the age of eight, speaking both German and English with her family at home.[9][11] Her mixed-race identity was a source of discomfort for her during her youth.[10] Growing up in New York's Washington Heights neighborhood,[11] she became interested in acting while attending Muscota New School and performed in community theaters and on local stages.[9] She graduated from the LaGuardia Arts High School in 2009, and attended Skidmore College, graduating in 2013 with a bachelor's degree in French.[15] She spent a year living in Paris.[9]

After Beetz graduated from college, she spent a year "broke and waiting tables" before she was cast in Atlanta.[10]

Personal life

In May 2022 Vanity Fair reported that Beetz had recently gotten engaged to her writing partner, actor David Rysdahl.[16][17] They met during an acting workshop and have been together since 2014.[10] They started a production company called Sleepy Poppy.[18][19] The couple married in 2023.[20]

Awards

At the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards in 2018, Beetz received a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series, for her role in FX's Atlanta.[21]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2015 James White Girl #1
Applesauce Rain
2016 Wolves Victoria
2017 Sollers Point Courtney
Geostorm Dana
2018 Dead Pigs Angie
Deadpool 2 Neena Thurman / Domino
Slice Astrid
2019 Wounds Alicia
High Flying Bird Sam [22]
Seberg Dorothy Jamal [23]
Joker Sophie Dumond [4]
Lucy in the Sky Erin Eccles [24]
2020 Nine Days Emma [25]
Still Here Keysha [26]
2021 Extinct Dottie Voice role
The Harder They Fall Stagecoach Mary [27]
2022 The Bad Guys Diane Foxington / The Crimson Paw Voice role[28][29]
Bullet Train The Hornet [30][31]
2024 Joker: Folie à Deux Sophie Dumond Post-production[32]
TBA The Dutchman Post-production[33]

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2016 Margot vs. Lily Allie Miniseries
2016–2022 Atlanta Vanessa "Van" Kiefer Main role
2016–2019 Easy Noelle 4 episodes
2019 The Twilight Zone Sophie Gelson Episode: "Blurryman"[34]
2020–2022 Robot Chicken Various Voice role; 3 episodes
2020 Home Movie: The Princess Bride Princess Buttercup 2 episodes[35]
Acting for a Cause Natalie Keener Episode: "Up in the Air"
2021–present Invincible Amber Bennett Recurring voice role, 12 episodes
2023 History of the World, Part II Mary Magdalene 3 episodes
Black Mirror Bo Episode: "Mazey Day"
Full Circle Mel Harmony Miniseries[36]
Big Mouth Danni Recurring voice role, 4 episodes

References

  1. ^ a b "Today in History". apnews.com. The Associated Press. June 1, 2020. Archived from the original on October 19, 2022. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  2. ^ Beetz, Zazie (October 5, 2019). "zah-SEE • oh-LIV-ee-uh • bates • ("Zazie" having the cadence of "marie" or "the sea", "Beetz" having a soft "e" sound- just like how we…". Zazie Beetz verified Instagram account. Archived from the original on December 23, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  3. ^ Back to the Source with Zazie Beetz. Mountain Valley Spring Water. January 17, 2018. Archived from the original on January 10, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2018 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ a b Garcia, Leonardo Adrian; Sharf, Zack; Thompson, Anne (November 4, 2019). "Todd Phillips Cut Zazie Beetz 'Joker' Scene That Confirmed Her Fate — Exclusive Video". IndieWire. Archived from the original on November 7, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  5. ^ "Candidates For Degrees Bachelor Of Arts" (PDF). Saratoga Springs, New York: Skidmore College. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 1, 2017. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
  6. ^ Johnson, Zoe (October 8, 2018). "5 Things We Learned From Chance The Rapper's Interview on Joe Budden Podcast". Vibe. Archived from the original on August 6, 2019.
  7. ^ a b "A ufgewachsen mit KiKa und Opas Spätzle / Growing up with KiKa and Grandpa Spaetzle" (in German). Germany: Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg. May 18, 2018. Archived from the original on April 15, 2019. Meine Eltern haben sich getrennt, als ich noch ganz klein war. / My parents separated when I was very young.
  8. ^ "Zazie Beetz: Atlanta In Brooklyn". NPR. Archived from the original on April 15, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
  9. ^ a b c d Hooton, Christopher (June 28, 2018). "Zazie Beetz: 'My German identity is really important to me'". The Independent. UK. Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. My dad is German, he was born in East Germany, and then after the [Berlin] Wall was brought down he came to the States for the first time and met my mom. They got pregnant in Germany, got married, stayed and had me there and then when I was 8 years old we moved to the States more permanently. But I was back and forth growing up, I went to pre-school over there but did all my proper schooling in New York.
  10. ^ a b c d e f Kemp-Habib, Alice (November 7, 2021). "Zazie Beetz: 'I remember thinking, am I not black enough?'". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  11. ^ a b c Davis, Allison P. "Zazie Beetz on Deadpool, Atlanta, and Overcoming Her Anxiety". The Cut. New York. Archived from the original on April 15, 2019. Retrieved June 10, 2018. Her father is white and German, and her mother a black New Yorker, who wanted her daughter to grow up seeing other people who looked like her. Though the family lived in Washington Heights, Beetz spent a couple of months of every summer in Germany with her grandparents.
  12. ^ Nepales, Janet Susan R. (May 20, 2018). "'Deadpool 2' cast opens up". GMA News Online. Archived from the original on November 9, 2019. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  13. ^ Rivera, Natalie (May 19, 2018). "You've DEFINITELY Seen Deadpool 2's Domino Actress Before". PopSugar. Archived from the original on November 9, 2019. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  14. ^ Agard, Chancellor (October 4, 2016). "Atlanta: Zazie Beetz talks her breakout episode, being directed by Donald Glover". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on May 1, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  15. ^ Beetz, Zazie. "About". Zazie Beetz Squarespace account. Archived from the original on April 1, 2014.
  16. ^ "Zazie Beetz Wants to Protect Atlanta's Van Too". Vanity Fair. May 19, 2022. Archived from the original on February 8, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  17. ^ Meyer, Joshua (February 26, 2022). "Zazie Beetz Is Working On A Rapunzel Movie, Complete With A Massive Afro". /Film. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  18. ^ Sblendorio, Peter (February 22, 2022). "'No Exit' star David Rysdahl on his new suspense movie and how NYC launched his show biz career". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on March 19, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  19. ^ Beetz, Zazie; Rysdahl, David (December 3, 2021). "Tiny Desk Playlist: Zazie Beetz and David Rysdahl's favorite Tiny Desk concerts". Archived from the original on April 18, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via NPR.
  20. ^ https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cz66aBipE8l/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
  21. ^ "Zazie Beetz Award and Nominations". Television Academy. Archived from the original on October 22, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  22. ^ Peters, Micah (February 12, 2019). "'High Flying Bird' Turns Conversation Into Sport". The Ringer. Archived from the original on February 13, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  23. ^ Kroll, Justin (April 2, 2018). "Zazie Beetz Eyes Jean Seberg Film 'Against All Enemies' Starring Kristen Stewart (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on April 4, 2018. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  24. ^ Mangum, Trey. "'Lucy In The Sky' Teaser: Zazie Beetz Is In Space With Natalie Portman And Jon Hamm In Early Oscar Contender". Shadow and Act. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  25. ^ Lattanzio, Ryan (October 12, 2020). "'Nine Days' Trailer: Zazie Beetz Stars in This Existential Fantasy That Dazzled Sundance". IndieWire. Archived from the original on October 20, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  26. ^ Kay2020-02-17T00:03:00+00:00, Jeremy. "Zazie Beetz drama 'Still Here' heads to EFM with Blue Fox International (exclusive)". Screen. Archived from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2021.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  27. ^ "Regina King wins Oscar for best supporting actress for If Beale Street Could Talk". the Guardian. February 25, 2019. Archived from the original on February 25, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  28. ^ "It's all good for Zazie Beetz, starring voice in 'The Bad Guys'". bostonherald.com. April 19, 2022. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  29. ^ "Zazie Beetz and Lilly Singh Say Animated Films Like 'The Bad Guys' Are For Adults Too". complex.com. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  30. ^ "'Bullet Train' Star Zazie Beetz Discusses Fighting Brad Pitt, 'Joker' Fate and 'Deadpool' Future". hollywoodreporter.com. August 6, 2022. Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  31. ^ "Sony's 'Bullet Train' Reunites Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock, And Zazie Beetz, Brian Tyree Henry Duos [Trailer]". themouthsoap.com. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  32. ^ Gonzalez, Umberto (December 10, 2022). "'Joker 2': Joaquin Phoenix Returns in First Look at Sequel (Photo)". TheWrap. Archived from the original on March 10, 2023. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
  33. ^ "André Holland, Zazie Beetz and Stephen McKinley Henderson to Star in Film Adaptation of Amiri Baraka's 'The Dutchman'". Yahoo News. September 27, 2023. Retrieved October 1, 2023.
  34. ^ Boucher, Geoff (March 8, 2019). "'The Twilight Zone': Zazie Beetz And Betty Gabriel Step Into CBS All-Access Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019.
  35. ^ Breznican, Anthony (June 26, 2020). "Watch the Celebrity-Filled Fan-Film Version of The Princess Bride". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on July 28, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  36. ^ Otterson, Joe (September 6, 2022). "'Atlanta' Star Zazie Beetz Joins Steven Soderbergh, Ed Solomon's HBO Max Series 'Full Circle'". Variety. Archived from the original on March 15, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2022.

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