‘I’m here, I’m queer’: actor Zoe Lister-Jones comes out at Independent Spirit Awards

Actor Zoe Lister-Jones has come out as queer, announcing she is dating filmmaker Sammi Cohen.

Lister-Jones, who has starred in Law & Order, and was seen opposite Angelina Jolie in 2010’s Salt, came out in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter at the Film Independent Spirit Awards on Sunday (25 February).

“I’m here, I’m queer, I have some fear, but I’m working through it,” she said. 

The star revealed her relationship with Cohen – who directed queer star Rowan Blanchard in 2022’s Crush – during a conversation about the award ceremony’s gender-neutral acting categories.

Lister-Jones urged other award ceremonies to “follow in their footsteps and make categories genderless”, adding: “I’m so grateful to Film Independent for being pioneers in that area.”

Appearing at the awards after Slip, which she wrote, directed and starred in, was nominated for best new scripted series, she continued: “I’m dating a non-binary person, I’m friends with so many non-binary people, and without really shifting the paradigm in a larger way, it’s closing a lot of doors for really important voices.”

Creating Slip had been liberating, she added.

“The Film Independent Spirit Awards is about independence of spirit. It’s about defying categorisation. It’s about defying formula.

“It’s also where I’ve been recognised for my work this awards season, so I’m really proud to be here in terms of my work and where I’m at in my life,” she said.

The actor had been married to filmmaker Daryl Wein for nine years. They divorced in 2022.

“I’m still very close with my ex-husband. We made a lot of films together,” she previously told The Hollywood Reporter.

Lister-Jones joins a host of celebrities who have come out as LGBTQ+ recently, including singer Billie Eilish, Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa, Drag Race contestant Amanda Tori Meating, and US actor and gameshow host Wayne Brady.