Madeline Zima

Madeline Zima (born September 16, 1985) is an American actress. She portrayed Grace Sheffield on the CBS sitcom The Nanny (1993–1999), Mia Lewis on the Showtime comedy drama series Californication (2007–2011), and Gretchen Berg on the NBC series Heroes (2006–2010).

Early life Zima was born in New Haven, Connecticut, on September 16, 1985, the daughter of Marie and Dennis Zima. Her surname means "winter" in Polish and comes from her maternal grandfather, who was of Polish descent. She has two younger sisters, Vanessa and Yvonne, both of whom are also actresses.

Career Madeline Zima began her career when she was two years old with an appearance in a television commercial for Downy fabric softener. Zima has become known for her work in films including The Hand That Rocks the Cradle,

In 2009, Zima joined the cast of Heroes as Gretchen Berg, Claire Bennet's quirky bisexual roommate and tentative love interest. She appeared as a guest star on several television shows, including Law & Order, but the series was not picked up by ABC. Zima starred in The Blondes (2019), a scripted podcast series, with her sister Yvonne.

In 2020, she appeared in HBO's Perry Mason In 2023, Zima joined Megan Fox in S.K. Dale's 2024 sci-fi thriller Subservience. In 2026, she played a guest role in the CBS medical-mystery series Watson.

Filmography

Film

Television

Directing credits

Year Title Notes 2018 Warm Human Magic 18 minute short

Writing credits

Year Title Notes 2018 Warm Human Magic 18 minute short

Music videos Year Title Artist 2011 "Sails" Hooray for Earth

Awards and nominations

Zima was nominated three times for a YoungStar Award, in 1995, 1997 and 1999, all for Best Performance by a Young Actress in a Comedy TV Series for The Nanny.

She was nominated 13 times for a Young Artist Award: 1993 – Best Young Actress Under Ten in a Motion Picture for The Hand That Rocks the Cradle 1994 – Best Youth Actress Leading Role in a Motion Picture Comedy and for Outstanding Youth Ensemble in a Television Series, shared with Benjamin Salisbury and Nicholle Tom, both for The Nanny 1995 – Best Performance by a Youth Actress as a TV Guest Star for Law & Order, and Best Performance by a Youth Ensemble in a Television Series shared with Nicholle Tom and Benjamin Salisbury, Best Performance by an Actress Under Ten in a Motion Picture and Best Performance by an Actress Under Ten in a TV Series, all of them for The Nanny 1996 – Best Performance by a Young Actress in a TV Comedy Series for The Nanny 1998 – Best Performance in a TV Comedy Series by a Supporting Young Actress for The Nanny 2001 – Best Performance in a TV Movie (Drama) by a Leading Young Actress for The Sandy Bottom Orchestra