Abigail Kathleen Breslin is an American teen actress. She is one of the youngest actresses ever to be nominated for an Academy Award.

Breslin appeared in her first commercial when she was only three years old, and in her first movie, Signs, at the age of five. Her subsequent films include Little Miss Sunshine, Nim's Island, Definitely, Maybe, My Sister's Keeper; Zombieland, and Rango.

Born April 14, 1996, Breslin was the younger sister of child actor Spencer Breslin, who starred in "Disney's The Kid" (2000) and "The Cat in the Hat" (2003); the siblings appeared together in the 2004 weeper "Raising Helen" and "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement." Her acting career began with appearances in several national television commercials, starting with a spot for Toys 'R' Us at the age of three. Her big break came in 2002 when M. Night Shyamalan cast her as Mel Gibson's youngest daughter in his science fiction hit, "Signs." Her character in the film - a curiously grave adolescent girl dealing with the traumatic death of her mother - clearly showed that Breslin had the chops to handle complex parts even at the tender age of six.

Turns on episodic series such as "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit" (NBC, 1999- ) and "Navy N.C.I.S." (CBS, 2003- ) preceded a trio of films in 2004 - all very different in tone and audience. In "Raising Helen," she was one of three recently orphaned children being raised by their career-minded aunt, while in the frothy teen comedy/romance "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement" (2004), she had what amounted to a cameo as a parade girl. Her final 2004 film was the dark, psychological drama "Keane" by "Clean, Shaven" (1995) director Lodge Kerrigan, in which she played the young daughter of a down-and-out mother who entrusts her child to a man who appears to be teetering on the edge of madness.

More TV and a direct-to-video feature - the kids' movie "Chestnut: Hero of Central Park," (2006) - followed, but "Little Miss Sunshine" was primed and sitting in the wings. Breslin found herself once again the subject of critical praise and movie audiences' adoration. Her entrancing, star-making performance - which stood out in a cast peopled by such top talent as Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Steve Carrell, and the esteemed Alan Arkin, with whom she shared some of the film's funniest scenes - was recognized by the Gotham Awards, who nominated her for Breakthrough Performance and as part of the Best Ensemble Cast. She also got a nod from the Screen Actors Guild Awards, earning a nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role - Theatrical Motion Pictures. The ultimate recognition came with an Oscar nod for Best Supporting Actress, making her the fourth-youngest actress ever nominated.

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