Samuel L. Jackson took a break from Hollywood after his daughter was born in 1982
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Samuel L. Jackson is a proud family man.
The Hollywood actor and his wife of over four decades, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, share one child together: a daughter named Zoe, 41.
“In the beginning, we always said the most revolutionary thing that Black people could do was stay together, raise their children with the nucleus of having a father and a mother, since everybody likes to pretend that that’s not the dynamic of the African American family,” LaTanya previously told PEOPLE of her and Samuel’s marriage.
While Zoe grew up in the public eye, attending red carpet events from a young age – including the 2000 ceremony for her dad’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame – she opted for a career behind the camera. Despite her low-key lifestyle, she still finds plenty of time to spend with her famous parents.
“She makes me laugh like nobody else,” Samuel previously told PEOPLE.
Zoe even quarantined with her parents during the COVID-19 pandemic, cooking for and entertaining her parents.
“Your presence & persistence, lemon bars & streaming suggestions were lockdown gifts that made the year bearable. You always made me know, things were going to be alright,” he captioned part of an Instagram post on Zoe’s 39th birthday in 2021.
So who is Zoe Jackson? Here is everything to know about Samuel L. Jackson’s daughter.
She was born on March 28, 1982
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Samuel and LaTanya Jackson welcomed their daughter on March 28, 1982, a little less than two years after tying the knot. Following her birth, the Pulp Fiction star focused on being a present father figure, something he didn’t have growing up.
“My dad was an absentee dad, so it was always important to me that I was part of my daughter’s life, and she deserved two parents, which is part of what informs us staying married for thirty years,” he told Esquire in 2010.
She is an Emmy Award-winning producer
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After graduating with a degree in psychology from Vassar College in 2004, Zoe followed in her parents’ footsteps – albeit behind the lens – by becoming an award-winning TV producer.
Her credits include working on shows such as Project Runway, Top Chef, Chopped, Funny or Die, Project Greenlight: A New Generation and RuPaul’s Drag Race, the latter of which she won an Emmy Award for in 2021 and a Producers Guild of America Award in 2022.
“Our daughter, Zoe, is like us in that she has a strong will, work ethic and sense of self,” Samuel previously told The Guardian.
She studied at the French Culinary Institute
LATONYA RICHARDSON JACKSON INSTAGRAM
In addition to graduating from Vassar College, Zoe also attended the prestigious French Culinary Institute that same year. Her dad – who occasionally is the recipient of her hard work in the kitchen – has a great appreciation for her culinary talent.
“Having her home during the pandemic was such a blessing. She was making us lemon bars, feeding us and making us laugh,” Samuel previously told PEOPLE.
She enjoys boating
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When Zoe gets some down time, she enjoys hanging out with her parents – especially on the water. She can frequently be seen with them soaking up the sun while sailing to places such as the Amalfi Coast.
The husband and wife halt work for part of the summer, making it a point to get everyone together for an outing. Samuel has only one rule for the excursion: “Don’t wake anybody up. You sleep when you sleep. Then we come together and eat,” he told PEOPLE in 2022.
She gives her dad social media advice
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While Zoe keeps a minimal social media profile, her father has a more active presence. He regularly shares his thoughts with his millions of followers on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), which can — at times — draw criticism. Though the Iron Man actor can stand up for himself, Zoe advised him to take a different route.
“My daughter had to teach me that I don’t respond to trolls. But if somebody says something really nasty about me, I retweet it and let my followers handle it,” he told Metro UK.
Samuel thanked her in his BET Lifetime Achievement Award speech
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Samuel — who currently holds the Guinness World Record for the most films over $100 million at the worldwide box office by an actor — was awarded BET’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016.
During his acceptance speech, he thanked his wife and daughter for helping him recover from a drug addiction, making his extensive career possible.
“The two women that actually found me passed out on the floor after I left somebody’s bachelor party, put my ass in rehab the next day, and supported me and pushed me and give me a reason to get up and go and chase it day after day after day,” he said.
She collaborates with her father
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The father-daughter duo have teamed up over the years, first working together in 2012 when Zoe produced an episode of Funny or Die, featuring her dad and Anne Hathaway.
The pair worked together again in 2020 to create a docuseries called Life on the Edge, which centered around marginalized communities and gang culture.
Produced by Ample Entertainment, the production team utilized Deepfake technology and self-shot footage to capture the day-to-day life of individuals in the shadows of some of the most notoriously violent groups in the world, all as they struggle to live life despite their circumstances.
“No one has ever looked at these groups from a fresh perspective – from the inside out. These are young people trying to find a place in a chaotic world up against extraordinary odds. I can’t think of stories more worthy of telling,” Samuel and Zoe said in a joint statement.
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