When I photographed Zosia Mamet for this story, there was a tender shyness I wasn’t expecting from the kin of literary and Hollywood royalty. Funny, disarming, whip-smart, and refreshingly open, she moved between shots with agency and the ease of someone who’s long since stopped needing to perform off-camera. But before the lens clicked, we had a brief and very human moment: no one on set was quite sure how to pronounce her name. ZOH-shah? ZAW-see-ah? ZOZ-ee-uh? With a laugh, she set us all straight. It’s much easier than people think, she said—ZAH-shah, plain and simple.

That small moment became the perfect metaphor for Mamet herself. Her creative life seems intricate on paper: a last name that carries weight, a résumé that spans genres and formats, and a constant churn of projects that include acting, book editing, and writing. Most recently, fans of her acting have enjoyed her in the witty historical comedy The Decameron on Netflix, the dark comedy Laid on Peacock, Disney’s animated cartoon series StuGo, and her SXSW-premiered film Fantasy Life. And for those who need another look into the mind of this out-of-the-box actor, they can read My First Popsicle: An Anthology of Food and Feelings, published by Penguin Random House in 2022. In this heartfelt collection of essays, Zosia interviewed artists, actors, and writers to explore the deep emotional connections between food and memory, illustrating how meals can evoke joy, grief, nostalgia, and healing. Another out-of-the-box move by a woman who won’t be pigeonholed. 

After our shoot, we discussed everything from her approach to acting, writing, and style, to tattoos, staying curious, and who she’d invite to dinner.