Abigail Breslin Pays Tribute to Little Miss Sunshine Co-star Alan Arkin

Little Miss Sunshine star Abigail Breslin has paid tribute to her co-star, Alan Arkin, who sadly passed away last week at the age of 89. Taking to social media, Breslin, who starred alongside Arkin in the tragicomedy road movie back in 2006, heaped praise on the actor, calling him one of the “kindest” and “most lovely human beings” she has ever worked with.

“Alan Arkin was one of the kindest, wittiest and most lovely human beings I have had the privilege of working with,” Breslin said in a post on Instagram alongside an image of herself alongside Arkin at the 79th Academy Awards. “I remember when we were doing the ‘Am I pretty?’ scene in Little Miss Sunshine and on the first take, he yelled out to ‘cut!’ and get my mother immediately because I was crying. I said, ‘No, Alan I’m acting!’, and he cracked up. I love that story because that’s who Alan was. He cared deeply about his work, but above all and most importantly, he was a genuinely kind and thoughtful man. Dearest, Alan… you will be profoundly missed. Thank you for everything. My sincerest condolences and love are sent to his family, including his beautiful wife Suzanne. Although we were not related in real life, you will always be ‘Grandpa’ in my heart. Rest peacefully.”

Breslin, who was only ten years old when she starred opposite Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine, no doubt echoes how many feel about Arkin’s recent passing with her words perfectly illustrating what a kind, warm person Arkin was behind the scenes and bringing to mind one of the movie’s most touching scenes.

RELATED: Alan Arkin’s Best Movies, Ranked

Little Miss Sunshine Is One of Alan Arkin’s Most Memorable Movies

Alan Arkin, who is best known for roles in the likes of Argo, Glengarry Glen Ross, Wait Until Dark, Catch-22, and many more, died on Thursday aged 89. “Our father was a uniquely talented force of nature, both as an artist and a man,” Arkin’s sons Adam, Matthew and Anthony said in a statement made to PEOPLE. “A loving husband, father, grand and great grandfather, he was adored and will be deeply missed.”

Released in 2006, directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, and written by Michael Arndt, Little Miss Sunshine remains one of Arkin’s most memorable movies. Even among his stellar back catalog. Little Miss Sunshine follows the Hoover family – a man (Greg Kinnear), his wife (Toni Collette), an uncle (Steve Carell), a brother (Paul Dano) and a grandfather (Alan Arkin) – and piles this dysfunctional group into a VW bus. Heading to California to support a daughter (Abigail Breslin) in her bid to win the Little Miss Sunshine Contest, the sanity of everyone involved is stretched to the limit as the group’s quirks cause epic problems as they travel along their interstate route.

The beloved actor, whose career spanned several decades and included all manner of critical acclaim, was awarded the Academy Award from Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in Little Miss Sunshine. The comedy-drama was something of an awards darling that year, with Little Miss Sunshine receiving nominations for Best Picture and Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for Abigail Breslin, and winning Best Original Screenplay alongside Best Supporting Actor for Arkin.