Yvonne Zima got started in Hollywood at a pretty young age, with her first feature role in Shane Black's 1996 film The Long Kiss Goodnight at the tender age of 7. From there, she's gone on to have long stints on ER and the The Young and the Restless as well as roles in a number of indie films. Now, Zima is all grown up and looking to make a splash in this summer's Iron Man 3. Check out our interview below where we ask her about reuniting with Shane and try to gleam a little info about her role as 'Miss Elksridge'.
Mark Julian: In terms of you joining the Iron Man 3 cast, the first thing that stands out is that you worked with Shane Black previously in The Long Kiss Goodnight. Did he approach you for this role or did you hear about it from other sources? Yvonne Zima: Actually, I auditioned for the role. Within one week of auditioning I flew out and did the part, it was all really quick. There’s a funny story, I re-met Shane sort of later in life because when we worked together I was 7 so I didn’t really know him on The Long Kiss Goodnight. Later in life, I saw him at a party and I was writing a novel at the time and I recognized him and said ‘Hey, I totally know you but you don’t know me because now I look like a woman but we worked together.’ Long story short, he actually helped me finish writing my novel and supplied me with writing notes so I know Shane as a writer but not really as a director. So it was cool to work with him as a director on Iron Man 3, he’s amazing. MJ: What attracted you to the role in a big summer blockbuster such as this, it looks to be a departure from some of your previous work. YZ: I think the craft service is supposed to be pretty good on big budget movies [laughs]. I’m actually a fan of Iron Man. I love that Robert Downey Jr. is Iron Man and I think that’s why a lot of people would agree that it’s elevated, a lot of the comic book movies I don’t enjoy as much as this one. I love action movies and I love him in this role, it’s an honor to be in a movie like this. MJ: Can you tell me anything about your role as ‘Miss Elkridge’ or who you filmed scenes with? YZ: I can probably say that it’s a funny role and Robert Downey Jr. is in one of the scenes I’m in, I see him but I don’t know if he sees me. That’s probably all I can say without getting trouble [laughs]. MJ: Did you have to perform any stunt work for the role? YZ: Yeah, I wore high heels [laughs], that counts as stunt work for me. MJ: Did you have to read any comic book for the role? YZ: I didn’t read any comic books but I had seen the movies so I kind of knew what they were going for, I think this film is unique in that it’s going to be the final one, I’m pretty sure it is and with Shane Black directing I think it will be slightly darker. So knowing Shane’s work and having watched the previous Iron Man films I didn’t do much preparation, I just hopped in there. MJ: You got started in the business at a pretty young age and you still have a long career ahead of you. Is action the specific genre you’re looking to explore or are you open to exploring other types of roles? YZ: I’m open to every genre although I don’t love slasher movies. I’ve done a few of those and I don’t think I ever will, ever again. The blood is sticky and there’s really no good female roles in those. But I really love action movies, I think it would be so cool to be an action star. MJ: What other projects do you have coming down the pipeline? YZ: Nothing ‘solid’ at the moment. I’m working on getting something off the ground with director/friend Sean Eisele (Surrogate) and we’re actually developing it with me and my two sisters, Vanessa Zima (Zoe) and Madeline Zima (Californication) and naturally, we’ll be playing sisters in the film. I was also just recently on Law & Order: SVU which was fun and allowed me to spend some time in New York. Yvonne is repped by Genesis Entertainment Partners.
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Release Date: May 3, 2013
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (probable)
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Ben Kingsley, Gwyneth Paltrow, Rebecca Hall, Don Cheadle, William Sadler, James Badge Dale, Yvonne Zima, Stephanie Szostak
Directed by: Shane Black
Written by: Shane Black (screenplay) Drew Pearce (screenplay) Stan Lee (comic book) Jack Kirby (comic book) Don Heck (comic book) Larry Lieber(comic book)
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