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Abigail BreslinConquers Nim’s Islandby Lynn B
We spoke with Abigail earlier this Spring in Beverly Hills. She looked very cute in black jeans, a striped blouse accessorized by a cat necklace. We noted a little habit of flipping her hair when she talks. So, what was life on an island with lots of animals like? What was acting with gorgeous Gerard Butler and talented Jodie Foster like and how was meeting her fave musical artists The Jonas Brothers? Who does she play in the much-anticipated “American Girl” film? Let’s find out… AGW: What was the best part of playing Nim for you? Abigail: Getting to work with all the animals. I have two dogs, two cats and a turtle. AGW: But Sea Lions and turtles and birds, that's different. What was that like? Abigail: It was really, really fun. They were all really nice. I had to train a bit [to work with them] and I had to train for the stunts. AGW: Which of the animals was the friendliest? Abigail: Probably the Sea Lions just because they come up to you and they give kisses and they do a lot of things. AGW: Were you a good swimmer before this? Abigail: I thought that I was and then once I got there I realized I wasn't that great of a swimmer and, in the water, they had this black tent over it for one scene and a metal pole and these huge tires and so that got a little bit scary. AGW: What did your physical training involve? Abigail: Just doing some of the stunts like doing the zip line and running, rock climbing. It was partly me and partly my stunt double. AGW: What things about her are like you and what things aren't? Abigail: Well, we both like animals and we're both home schooled. I'm in sixth grade. AGW: If you were home alone like Nim, could you be happy and entertain yourself or are you the kind of person who needs their friends around? Abigail: I probably would need people around because half the time I can't even find my shoes in the morning [laughs]. AGW: Can you talk about what it was like working with Jodie Foster and Gerard Butler? Abigail: They were both really nice. Gerard is really funny. We were walking up the steps one day on the deserted island that we were staying on. There was one lodge and we lived in tree houses. There were a hundred and nine steps up and there were Bush Rats and geckos and tree frogs and we were walking up one night and we hear [hissing] and so we took the flashlight and we screamed. We looked up and it was just Gerard. AGW: Ah, he likes to pull pranks. I understand that you had a jar for every time he cursed on the set. Abigail: Yes, the swear jar. All together with everybody we made a $150. We donated it to the RSPCA which is the ASPCA in Australia. AGW: And working with Jodie? Did she give you any advice? Abigail: She was really, really nice. She was great. Just watching her you can learn from her because you believe every character that she is. Watching her was kind of like learning. AGW: Who are some of your favorite action heroes and did you feel like a little girl Indiana Jones making this movie? Abigail: I don't know. The stunt people called Nim ‘Nimdiana Jones’. So that was kind of funny and my favorite action hero, I don't know. I don't know that many action heroes, I have to say. AGW: Do you have a favorite author? Abigail: Well, my favorite book is 'Ann of Green Gables' and Lucy Montgomery wrote that. I just like Ann. I think that she's really funny and that she's crazy, but I like her a lot. AGW: You were a big hit in Little Miss Sunshine. How carefully did you and your team choose your projects after that? Abigail: I don't know. My mom will read the script and then she'll tell me if I can read it or not and if I can I try and see if this is somebody that I would like to know and if we both like it and they ask us if we want to do it then we say yes. AGW: The tree house set that was their home in this movie looked really cool onscreen. Was it just as cool to be there? Abigail: It was really cool because in Nim's room there was this red and orange spiral ceiling. AGW: Can you talk about working with the lizards because you had one on your shoulder through most of the film? Abigail: I loved the lizards. They were really funny. They would just kind of sit there and kind of be like ‘whatever’. In the beginning I was a little bit [freaked out by them], but then I got over it. They were all really funny and I liked them all. One of them, Goblet, she laid her eggs while we were shooting. AGW: How many of the animals were CG? Did you ever have to deal with not having them actually there on set with you? Abigail: No, not really. We had the animatronic turtles and an animatronic Sea Lion while we were on the beach or else they would've gone out into the ocean. AGW: You dance with the Sea Lion. Was there some choreography involved in that?
AGW: Were you holding on to the Sea Lion in that scene where you swim with him or was he put in later as CGI while you held on to something else? Abigail: The sea lion was there, but he had this harness on him. There were little handles on it and it was the same color as his fur kind of is. That was on him and I would hold onto the handles AGW: Was it hard to say goodbye to all the animals after this film? Abigail: Yeah, I cried. I gave Spud and Friday [the two Sea Lions], as a gift, fish. That was my gift to them. AGW: You shot the movie in Australia. What did you get to see and do while you weren't working? Abigail: I snorkeled on the Great Barrier Reef which was cool. I also got to go to this wildlife sanctuary. There were kangaroos and koalas there and that was really cool. AGW: You are a big city girl. Being out there in nature so much, is that something that you think you could do if you had to do it? Abigail: I don't know. I don't think so. I don't think I really could. I'd be like, 'So where's the nearest –' AGW: Starbucks? Abigail: [laughs] No. My mom would ask that. My mom's favorite thing in the world is Starbucks. But, there's a pizza place that I love that's called Mary Ella's and it's so good. I would miss that. AGW: What did you find that you loved about being out in the wilderness? Abigail: I liked being at the beach. It was nice and pretty. I liked looking at the tree frogs, but I wouldn't touch them. AGW: What do you do and what do you think kids and teens can do for the environment? Abigail: Probably, just doing little things like turning off the lights when you're done and turning off the TV and unplugging things. AGW: What would you say is the message of this movie? Abigail: Nim is trying to take care of her island and even if she's scared she just tries and does what she can. Nim and Alexandra [the author] both conquer their fears and do what they don't want to do, but in the end they realize that it's okay and they feel better about it. I think that's the most important. AGW: Do you have anything that you'd fight for like she fought for the island? Abigail: I would really want to protect my room. No! I'm just kidding. My room is a disaster. It's a complete and total mess all the time and that's the way that I like it and nobody can tell me to clean it. AGW: Was there anything in Nim's room that you thought was cool and would like to have? Abigail: One of the things that I really liked was the bed. It was kind of like wood and it had the threads around it and the shells all along it. I thought that was really cool. AGW: Did you take any souvenirs home from the movie? Abigail: I got to take some of the clothes that are really cool. I think I got to keep the boots. I loved them. It took someone to help me tie them because they're very difficult to tie. AGW: What was the experience like going to The Oscars last year? Abigail: It was really fun. I met Meryl Streep which was really cool. This year we all sat at home and we were in our pajamas and we ate popcorn and watched it. AGW: How does this role of Nim differ from the other ones you've done in the past? Abigail: Well, I got to do a lot more stuff that I haven't done in movies before like the running and climbing and playing with the sea lions and stuff. So I think she's a bit more actiony than anyone else I've played. I spent a lot of time talking to a lizard and a sea lion. The lizard just kind of stares at you while you're talking. AGW: Who was the funniest person on set, telling jokes between scenes? Abigail: Probably Gerard. He was always kind of doing that. We made the swear jar, like I said, and one of the things he did was that he'd swear and I'd say to him, 'You have to pay me.' It built up to like $12 and then he said to me, 'Oh, no. I'm going to give you $20 and so the next four times that I swear I don't have to pay you. I get them free.' I said, 'That's not the way it works.' AGW: Was most of this film shot out in the wild? Abigail: A lot of it was. Most of it was, but then [some] was in a studio. All of the tree house stuff was in a studio and so there was a green screen. AGW: Is there a character in a book or an historical character that you've read about that you'd love to play someday? Abigail: I would really like to play Lady Jane Grey and Helen Keller. AGW: Good choices. What movie that doesn't have a sequel should have a sequel? Abigail: I'm trying to think. Okay, I have one. This is one of my favorite movies. The Devil Wears Prada. There should totally be a sequel. I love that movie. AGW: Are you a shopaholic? Abigail: Yes! [laughs] No. But I do like shopping for clothes or anything really. AGW: Have you gotten anything new lately? Abigail: I did just get a cat. So that was really cool and his name is Blue Reed and he's upstairs. I've been saying upstairs [in the 4 Seasons hotel] all day long. We tried to put a collar on him [and take him for a walk] and he took it off immediately. He's a Blue Siberian and he's from a breeder. We have a cat that's just a Siberian and so we got her. AGW: Do you have a favorite scene from any movie that you'd like to do? Abigail: You know what I've always wanted to do and I've never done it, and this could be like in any movie, is a food fight. It seems like it'd be so much fun. I would just like to throw food and that would be really fun. AGW: What kind of music do you like? Abigail: I like The Jonas Brothers. I like Hannah Montana and I just started to like Jack Johnson. AGW: Have you had a chance to meet Miley Cyrus or the Jonas Brothers? Abigail: I've met the Jonas Brothers once. Not that long actually, like a week and a half ago. AGW: Did you keep it together or freak out? Abigail: Well, I was with my brother and my mom and our friend Sky and my friend Zoe. Me and Zoe are sitting there and her leg was twitching. She was like, 'Oh, my gosh! We're going to meet The Jonas Brothers.' I was freaking out and so we were both sort of freaking out. Then when we met them we were like, 'Hi, nice to meet you.' Then when we got away we were like [heavy breathing]. AGW: Typical reaction I’m sure! Is there a Jonas Brother that you prefer? Abigail: [laughs] No. My friend Zoe and I were both saying this, we like Joe's hair because it's kind of cool and I kind of like Nick because I think he's kind of cool. I like them all. Kevin is kind of cool too. AGW: Nim is pretty good on her computer. Are you good on the computer like your character? Abigail: Well, me and [my directors] Mark and Jen were on set and it was the first scene where she was on the computer and they said, 'Show us how you type while you're on the computer.' So I was just like doing it like whatever. So then they said, 'Okay, so now try doing hunt and peck.' I did that and then they said, 'Okay, that's what we're going to do.' They said that they wanted her to look like she knew how to do it, but that she wasn't that great at it, that she knew what to do, but would look up and then look down. AGW: Where do you meet your friends mostly since you're home schooled? Abigail: Well, my two cousins are my friends and then just anywhere. There's a pool by my house and I've met a couple of my friends there, or one of my friends there. Anywhere really. AGW: Do you want to go to regular school at some point? Abigail: Probably. I want to go to college when I get older which is sort of regular school, but I don't know. I'm not a big fan of waking up early so I don't think so. AGW: Where would you like to go in the world that you haven't been to? Abigail: I want to go to Paris and Italy. AGW: Did you always want to act or did this happen suddenly for you? Abigail: Well, I was in a commercial when I was three and then I did a movie when I was five and I liked it. My brother [actor Spencer Breslin] started acting before I did and I just sort of liked it and wanted it to do it and so I did it. AGW: Do you see yourself having a different career someday? Abigail: I either want to do this or I want to be a veterinarian. AGW: When you first read the script and saw that there were scenes with lizards and sea lions what did you think? Abigail: I was really excited. The first time that I met Mark and Jen I asked them if we were going to be using real animals or animatronics. They said they were using real animals. I was like, 'Yes!' AGW: Do you have more movies coming up this year? Abigail: I have Kit Kittredge: An American Girl coming out and I'm doing a movie right now with Cameron Diaz called My Sister's Keeper. It's about a girl who has cancer and my character is born to give her blood. AGW: Were you familiar with the American Girls before doing the movie? And do you have an affinity for them? Abigail: I like Kit. I love her. She's really fun to play because she's kind of just very funny. I always loved the American Girl dolls and so it was fun to get to play her. AGW: What's the story of the American Girl movie? Abigail: It's about a girl, Kit, who's growing up during the great depression. She wants to be a news reporter. AGW: Did you do any research about that time period? Abigail: Well, my grandma grew up at the same time that Kit did and so we've sort of been talking about that. I would show her the doll and she said that those were like some of the clothes that she would wear when she was younger. Photos courtesy of and copyright Fox-Walden, 2008 |
 
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Did
you ever want to be Indiana Jones or a femme version of the mega-popular
adventurer? Young actress Abigail Breslin got to experience just that
kind of a challenge in her new movie Nim’s Island. The
young star plays Nim, a tween living on an isolated island with her (very
hot) researcher dad played by Gerard Butler. Nim’s fave literary
hero is Alex Rover, an Indy type created by an oddly-reclusive female
writer (Jodie Foster) who, when Nim gets in trouble and contacts her,
is lured out of her safe home and to the rescue. Of course, the two end
up sort of rescuing each other. 
Abigail:
Well, you have to do the dances that the sea lions know. So this is something
that they know. They'll turn around with that, but other than that I just
kind of made it up.