Cozi Zuehlsdorff

Zuehlsdorff was born on August 3, 1998, in California, the United States of America. She has an older sister named Lacey Joi Zuehlsdorff. They, along with their parents and their dog Bandit, presently reside in Orange County, California. Zuehlsdorff is a devout Christian. Due to her busy schedule, her parents decided to have her home-schooled. She graduated from high school on June 13, 2016.

Zuehlsdorff has been interested in performing since she was a child. At the age of eight, she auditioned for the titular part in ‘Annie’ at a local theatre company in Aliso Viejo, California. As someone who had grown up with a deep love for musical theatre, she answered the casting call thinking it would be a fun thing to do. Her audition evidently impressed the producers who cast her in the eponymous role. In the subsequent years, she has played Dorothy in ‘The Wizard of Oz’, JoJo in ‘Seussical the Musical’, Sally Brown in ‘You're a Good Man Charlie Brown’, Brigitta in ‘The Sound of Music’, and many other roles.

In 2011, Cozi Zuehlsdorff made her screen debut in Charles Martin Smith’s 3D family drama film ‘Dolphin Tale’. Also starring Nathan Gamble, Harry Connick, Jr., Ashley Judd, Kris Kristofferson, and Morgan Freeman, the film revolves around the friendship between a young boy named Sawyer (Gamble) and a dolphin named Winter. It was based on the book of the same name, which, in turn, was inspired by true events. In fact, the real-life Winter played her fictional counterpart. Zuehlsdorff portrayed Hazel Haskett, the 11-year-old daughter of Dr. Clay Haskett (Harry Connick Jr.), who meets Sawyer at the aquarium and becomes friends with him. The film was a critical and commercial success and provided the ideal launch pad for Zuehlsdorff’s career. She, along with most of the original cast members, reprised her role in the 2014 sequel ‘Dolphin Tale 2’.

In 2012, she debuted on the small screen by playing Crystal Sullenger in what was supposed to be the pilot episode of a new show called ‘Bits and Pieces’. Produced by Disney Channel, it was eventually developed as a TV show called ‘Liv and Maddie’ and instead of being a lead character, Zuehlsdorff was cast in a guest role. She appeared in two episodes of season one (2013): ‘Steal-A-Rooney’ and ‘Kang-A-Rooney’.

Zuehlsdorff was cast as the recurring character Jordan in Disney XD’s superhero comedy TV series ‘Mighty Med’. She first appeared in the pilot episode, ‘Saving the People Who Save People’, which aired on October 7, 2013. Her final appearance was in episode 19 of season two, ‘Thanks for the Memory Drives’, which aired on August 5, 2015.

In 2013, she lent her voice to Buttercup in Disney’s animated series ‘Sofia the First’. She voiced the character once more in 2015. In the following year, she voiced a new character, a witch, in one episode. In 2014, she was featured in the music video for the song ‘Power of Me’. She also provided one of the additional voices for the song.

Zuehlsdorff played Piper Spencer in the direct-to-video country musical ‘Pure Country: Pure Heart’ (2017). In 2018, she starred opposite Heidi Blickenstaff in Disney Channel original movie ‘Freaky Friday’. She is reportedly set to appear in the upcoming film based on Trudy Adams’ Christian fiction ‘Desolate Beauty’.

Zuehlsdorff has been playing the piano for about a decade. It was reported in 2013 that she was in Level 9 of the Certificate of Merit program. That year, in November, she tried writing songs for the first time during the filming of ‘Dolphin Tale 2’ and contributed the song ‘Brave Souls’ to the film’s soundtrack. On November 27, 2014, she put out her first EP, ‘Originals’, on digital media.