Josie Lynn Shalhoub, professionally known as Josie Adams, is an American writer, producer, and founder of House of Water. She is the adopted daughter of actor Tony Shalhoub and actress Brooke Adams, and she grew up in Los Angeles after being adopted at birth from Omaha, Nebraska. Rather than following her parents primarily into acting, Josie developed a career around writing, producing, food, audio storytelling, and creative development. In 2026, she is attracting additional attention as the co-author of We Thought They’d Never Leave: Musings on Food & Family, written with her father.
Quick Answer
Who is Josie Lynn Shalhoub? Josie Lynn Shalhoub is a writer and producer who works professionally as Josie Adams. She is the daughter of Tony Shalhoub and Brooke Adams, the founder of House of Water, and the co-author of the 2026 book We Thought They’d Never Leave. Her official biography says she was adopted at birth from Omaha and raised in Los Angeles.
Josie Lynn Shalhoub: Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Josie Lynn Shalhoub / Josie Adams |
| Profession | Writer, producer |
| Known for | Writing, producing, House of Water |
| Father | Tony Shalhoub |
| Mother | Brooke Adams |
| Adoption | Adopted at birth |
| Birthplace | Omaha, Nebraska |
| Raised in | Los Angeles |
| Education | BFA in Theatre, CalArts |
| Company | House of Water |
| 2026 book | We Thought They’d Never Leave |
| Co-author | Tony Shalhoub |
| Current home | New Jersey |
Her own website identifies her as an author, producer, and founder of House of Water and says she lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children.
Who Is Josie Lynn Shalhoub?
Josie Lynn Shalhoub is a creative professional whose career extends well beyond her connection to a famous Hollywood family.
She is best known professionally as Josie Adams, a name that appears on her writing, producing, and publishing work. Her official biography describes her as an author, producer, and founder of House of Water, an independent production company working across film, television, books, audio, and theater.
That career path is notable because Josie grew up surrounded by performers but developed her own role behind the scenes.
Her work combines several interests: storytelling, food, books, audio projects, production, and family history. Those themes come together particularly clearly in her collaboration with Tony Shalhoub.
Is Josie Lynn Shalhoub Tony Shalhoub’s Daughter?
Yes. Josie Lynn Shalhoub is Tony Shalhoub’s daughter.
Tony Shalhoub is best known for starring in Monk, Wings, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and numerous films and stage productions. Brooke Adams, Josie’s mother, is an actress known for movies including Days of Heaven and The Dead Zone and for her television and theater work.
Brooke adopted Josie at birth. Tony Shalhoub later became her adoptive father after marrying Brooke Adams in 1992. The family subsequently adopted another daughter, Sophie Shalhoub, in 1994. Contemporary biographical sources consistently describe this family history.
Josie Lynn Shalhoub’s Adoption Story
One of the most frequently searched aspects of Josie’s biography is her adoption.
Her official biography states that she was adopted at birth from Omaha, Nebraska, and raised in Los Angeles. Simon & Schuster’s author page also confirms this background.
Because information about biological parents is not publicly documented in the same authoritative sources, it is better not to speculate about their identities or circumstances.
What is publicly established is that Brooke Adams adopted Josie, and Tony Shalhoub later adopted her as part of the family.
This distinction is important for an accurate biography. Adoption is part of Josie’s publicly documented family history, but it does not mean every detail about her biological family is available—or appropriate—to fill in.
Growing Up in Los Angeles
Josie was raised in Los Angeles in a family deeply connected to acting and storytelling.
Her father built an internationally recognized acting career, while her mother worked in film, television, and theater. That environment exposed Josie to the creative industries from an early age.
However, her eventual career developed in a different direction.
Rather than becoming primarily known as an actor, Josie pursued writing, producing, and creative development. Her current professional biography shows a broad interest in different storytelling formats, from essays and books to audio and screen development.
Education: CalArts and Culinary Training
Josie Adams holds a BFA in Theatre from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts).
Her official biography also says she has earned multiple culinary degrees, an especially relevant detail given how strongly food and family appear in her writing.
The combination of theater training and culinary education helps explain the unusual range of her creative work.
Theater provides a foundation in character, dialogue, performance, and storytelling, while culinary training gives her a practical connection to food and hospitality. Those interests increasingly overlap in her writing.
Josie Adams as a Writer
Writing has become one of the most important parts of Josie’s professional identity.
Her official website lists essays and stories appearing in or forthcoming from outlets including LitHub, McSweeney’s, Bon Appétit, and Audible.
Her work also includes audio storytelling. Her listed Audible projects include sleep stories such as:
- “The Tea Shoppe”
- “The Swan Prince’s Lantern”
- “The Florist”
- “The Gardener”
- “The Village Bookshop”
- “The Watchful Streetlamp”
- “The Mountain Lodge”
These projects demonstrate that her writing career is not limited to traditional print publishing.
She works across formats, including written essays, audio storytelling, books, and screen development.
Josie Adams and House of Water
In 2025, Josie Adams founded House of Water, an independent production company.
The company’s official website describes House of Water as a female-forward production company focused on unexpected stories and development across film, television, books, audio, and theater. Josie serves as its President and Founder.
The company works with writers, creators, and rights holders to develop original material and adapt distinctive intellectual property.
This represents another step in Josie’s career away from simply being known as Tony Shalhoub’s daughter.
Her professional identity increasingly centers on creating and developing stories herself.
Josie Lynn Shalhoub and Tony Shalhoub’s 2026 Book
One of the biggest developments in Josie’s public profile in 2026 is her collaboration with her father.
Tony Shalhoub and Josie Adams are the authors of We Thought They’d Never Leave: Musings on Food & Family.
Simon & Schuster lists the book as a heartfelt memoir about food, family, recipes, and stories passed down through generations. It focuses on the Shalhoub family’s long-running summer gatherings in Door County, Wisconsin.
The hardcover edition is scheduled for October 27, 2026, from Gallery Books, with 288 pages.
What Is the Book About?
The book explores Tony Shalhoub’s family history, memories, food traditions, and the annual gatherings that have connected generations of the Shalhoub family.
According to the publisher, the family has gathered in Door County for more than five decades, bringing together more than 50 relatives for meals, games, stories, and traditions. The book also includes 20 family recipes.
Publishers Weekly describes the book as a memoir centered on the family’s annual Wisconsin reunion and the food and traditions surrounding it.
For Josie, the project represents a natural intersection of her writing career, culinary interests, and family history.
Why the Book Matters to Josie’s Career
The book gives readers a different way to understand Josie Adams’s role in the Shalhoub family.
She is not simply appearing as the daughter of a famous actor. She is actively helping shape and tell the family’s story.
The publisher credits the book to Tony Shalhoub with Josie Adams, while Josie’s own website describes her as the co-author.
That collaboration also connects her professional interests in writing and food with her family’s Lebanese-American traditions.
In this sense, We Thought They’d Never Leave is both a publishing project and an extension of themes already present in Josie’s career.
Does Josie Lynn Shalhoub Act?
Josie’s primary public career is in writing and producing, rather than acting.
IMDb currently lists Josie Adams as a producer, actress, and writer, and credits her as a producer on Tony Shalhoub: Breaking Bread.
Her official biography, however, emphasizes her work as an author, producer, and founder of House of Water.
So while she has some acting-related credits, describing her primarily as a writer and producer more accurately reflects her current professional profile.
Josie Lynn Shalhoub’s Personal Life
Josie’s current biography provides a limited but useful amount of information about her personal life.
Her official website states that she lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children. Simon & Schuster independently confirms that she lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children.
Beyond these publicly provided details, extensive information about her family life is not necessary to understand her career.
Her public professional identity is centered much more strongly on writing, producing, and creative development.
What Makes Josie Adams Different From Her Parents?
Tony Shalhoub and Brooke Adams built their careers primarily through performance.
Josie’s career takes a different route.
Her work focuses on:
- Writing and essays
- Food storytelling
- Audio
- Book development
- Film and television production
- Theater development
- Creative producing
- Family history
House of Water’s cross-platform focus reflects that broad approach.
Rather than being defined solely by her family’s acting background, Josie has developed a career that connects multiple creative industries.
Josie Lynn Shalhoub in 2026
2026 is an especially relevant year for Josie Adams.
Her profile has expanded through several connected projects:
- Co-authoring a book with Tony Shalhoub
- Preparing for the October 2026 publication of We Thought They’d Never Leave
- Continuing her work as founder of House of Water
- Developing stories across books, audio, film, television, and theater
- Continuing her writing work under the professional name Josie Adams
Her own website also identifies an upcoming children’s book, Ollie’s Marvelous Mind, co-authored with her father and forthcoming from Philomel in 2028.
That suggests her collaboration with Tony Shalhoub is not limited to one project.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Josie Lynn Shalhoub?
Josie Lynn Shalhoub, professionally known as Josie Adams, is an American writer, producer, and founder of House of Water. She is the adopted daughter of Tony Shalhoub and Brooke Adams.
Is Josie Lynn Shalhoub Tony Shalhoub’s biological daughter?
No. Public biographies state that Josie was adopted at birth by Brooke Adams and was later adopted by Tony Shalhoub after he married Brooke.
What does Josie Lynn Shalhoub do?
She works as a writer and producer. She founded House of Water, a production company developing projects across film, television, books, audio, and theater.
What is Josie Lynn Shalhoub’s professional name?
She is professionally known as Josie Adams. Her official website and Simon & Schuster author page use that name.
Did Josie Lynn Shalhoub write a book with Tony Shalhoub?
Yes. She co-authored We Thought They’d Never Leave: Musings on Food & Family with Tony Shalhoub. Gallery Books is scheduled to publish the book on October 27, 2026.
Conclusion
Josie Lynn Shalhoub is much more than the daughter of actors Tony Shalhoub and Brooke Adams. Known professionally as Josie Adams, she has developed her own career as a writer, producer, and creative entrepreneur.
Her background is distinctive: adopted at birth from Omaha, raised in Los Angeles, educated at CalArts, and trained in culinary arts, she has brought together theater, food, writing, and production in a career that crosses several creative formats.
Her founding of House of Water and collaboration with Tony Shalhoub on We Thought They’d Never Leave mark particularly notable chapters in that career. The 2026 book also provides a natural meeting point between her professional interests and the family stories that shaped her upbringing.
