‘Zero Day’ Star Is Also a Nurse—and Isn’t Leaving the ER Anytime Soon

The 34-year-old nurse launched her acting career in 2017.

Eden Lee attends Netflix's "Zero Day" world premiere in New York City on Feb. 18, 2025. Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

Eden Lee, a 34-year-old emergency room nurse based in North Carolina, has secured a breakout role in Netflix’s upcoming limited series “Zero Day,” while remaining passionate about her patient care job.

Lee is currently employed at Atrium Health Union in Monroe, North Carolina, where she works as a nurse on an as-needed basis. In an interview with Fox News Digital, she said the flexibility of her position allows her to accept acting opportunities without sacrificing her work in health care.

“Luckily, I’ve been an ER nurse for 12 years now, so I have a loyalty to my department, and my department has a loyalty for me,” Lee said. “So I’m offered a lot of flexibility and freedom to pursue my career.”

Lee, a native of New York who studied nursing at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, initially planned to attend medical school. Instead, she chose a faster route to patient care through nursing.

After enrolling in classes at the Film Actors’ Studio Charlotte, Lee realized that she enjoyed acting but had no plans to depart from her medical career.

“It was never a thought in my mind to abandon my nursing career,” she told The Charlotte Observer. “But there’s a world in which these two things can live in tandem, and I wanted to see what that was like.”

During filming in New York for “Zero Day,” Lee traveled back to Charlotte to meet her minimum required hours on her days off from set.

“Emergency nursing is hands down another passion of mine,” Lee said. “I feel a drive and a passion for that as well.”

Lee began acting in 2017, first appearing in short films and later taking on guest roles in shows such as “The Resident,” “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,” “Twisted Metal,”  and “Found.” Her film credits include “County Line: No Fear” (2022) and “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” (2023).

Lee stated that she does not intend to leave nursing, despite recent success in entertainment. “I’ve been working professionally for a few years, and so luckily and thankfully, I have the luxury of honestly letting my nursing job go,” she told Fox News Digital.

“And my husband has from time to time been like, ‘You should just quit. Why are you still going?’” she said. “And I worked really hard for this thing, too. So emergency nursing feels very much a part of me as acting does.”

From Emergency Room to Hollywood Set

Lee’s upcoming appearance in “Zero Day” represents her first major role. The Netflix political thriller, which remains in post-production, experienced delays due to the 2023 Hollywood labor strikes. Production eventually resumed, and Lee spent several weeks filming in New York.

On Instagram, Lee reflected on the opportunity: “In April 2023, I auditioned for a little show called Zero Day knowing two things: one, this was a Robert De Niro show(?!), and two, there wasn’t aaaaany way I’d ever be lucky enough to book it. But that next month, I was flying to New York for the table read.”

She described the shoot as a formative experience. “I spent two months in NYC working on this show. I showed up every day to ‘fleece up’ (you’ll see, she be wearing a lot of fleece), and, on the rare occasion, I got to put on a cute suit,” Lee wrote. “But every day, I got to watch, listen, and learn from people I have spent my whole life admiring.”

“Special Agent Angela Kim is a small piece of the massive puzzle that is Zero Day, but she changed my life,” she said of her character in the show. “And I hope you love this show as much as I loved being a part of it.”

The series, led by De Niro, also stars Jesse Plemons, Lizzy Caplan, and Joan Allen. Lee plays the role of Special Agent Angela Kim, a supporting character she credits with changing the trajectory of her career.