Interview: Zoe Kazan Discusses the Personal Importance of Her Take on ‘East of Eden’

There are few bigger fans of Zoe Kazan out there than yours truly. Ever since she first blew me away (no pun intended) in The Exploding Girl, I’ve championed her acting. Look no further than my rave review here for She Said for further evidence of that. When she first transitioned to writing with Ruby Sparks, she turned in one of the best performances of that year, alongside one of the best screenplays. The same goes for the script she penned with Paul Dano for Dano’s filmmaking debut Wildlife. Now, after some time away to raise her children, she’s returned with a limited series take on East of Eden, which she created and functioned as showrunner on. That impressive task made it a no-brainer to pursue a discussion with her, especially since I’ve interviewed her several times over my two decades now doing this. With the show now streaming on Netflix, I’m thrilled to share our latest chat with you all.

East of Eden marks Kazan’s debut as a showrunner, working with Jeb Stuart there. She co-wrote the limited series as well, alongside Alexander Chee. She got together a wonderful cast, led by Florence Pugh, but also featuring Christopher Abbott, Mike Faist, Ciarán Hinds, and Hoon Lee among the main players. The result is something fresh and new, but not at all conflicting with the classic works, instead in conversation with them. It’s actually quite an achievement, given the enormity of the task at hand. It’s no surprise she’s next going to be adapting Lonesome Dove, working once more with Stuart, functioning as co-showrunner, co-writer, and executive producer. She’s not just uniquely qualified for this, she’s uniquely talented too.

Below, you can see my conversation with Kazan. We hadn’t seen each other or spoken in a bit, so there’s an initial burst of joy in reconnecting. Then, it’s East of Eden time. Kazan talks about how the book, as well as film, are important to her, especially given the complicated relationship she has with the latter’s director, her grandfather Elia Kazan. I wanted to know about what it felt like to be able to put her own spin on the story, not just because of her grandfather, but because of how the book is such a touchstone to her. That leads to a discussion of what makes adaptations worthwhile. I think we have a wonderful little talk, but you be the judge. Be sure to check out East of Eden on Netflix now. I think it works no matter if you’re a fan of the source material or coming to it fresh. She’s knocked it out of the park.

Here is my interview with East of Eden showrunner and co-writer Zoe Kazan. Enjoy:

East of Eden is available to stream now on Netflix!