Innocent in every way, like apple pie and Chevrolet...
Made for just $10 million, American Pie was released on July 9, 1999 and went on to gross over $235 million and become a billion dollar franchise, continuing with three big screen sequels and four straight-to-DVD movies. It was the sleeper hit of 1999 that no one saw coming, especially the studio, Universal, which sold off the foreign rights in an attempt to recoup its budget. (Big mistake. Huge.)
Unlike its fellow '99 teen comedies (She's All That, 10 Things I Hate About You, etc.), American Pie wasn't afraid to talk about sex, with the film focusing on five best friends' quest to lose their respective virginities before the end of high school. (Warm apple pies do not count.)
Featuring a cast of mostly unknown actors, it launched the careers of Jason Biggs, Seann William Scott, Chris Klein and Tara Reid among others. Plus, it cemented Jennifer Coolidge's status as pop culture's ultimate movie MILF.
The majority of the stars returned for the direct sequels, American Pie 2, American Wedding and American Reunion, while trying to avoid being type-cast for their iconic roles in the teen sex comedy. But some experienced personal hardships, including Russian Doll star Natasha Lyonne, while others found second careers as musicians, professional poker players and live-tweeters of The Bachelor.
So what are all of the stars up to more than a decade after the fourth and final (for now!) film American Reunion was released on April 6, 2012?
Thanks to his breakout role as Jim Levenstein, Biggs will forever be tied to apple pies. (The one used in that infamous scene was from Costco, in case you were wondering!) Just 21 when the film came out, Biggs went on to land starring roles in films such as Loser and Saving Silverman, along with the three Pie sequels. He had a mini-reunion with co-star Natasha Lyonne as he was a cast member on Orange Is the New Black. Biggs also hosted E!'s game show Cash at Your Door in 2021.
Biggs and actress/comedian Jenny Mollen married in 2008 after they met on the set of the movie My Best Friend's Girl, going on to welcome a son named Sid Biggs in February 2014 and another boy, Lazlo Biggs, in October 2017.
In 2018, Biggs reunited with his onscreen dad Eugene Levy to introduce him to his two kids, writing on Instagram he had "to bring in the big guns" to make his second child laugh. No pies were harmed.
Over the years, Biggs and Mollen became so well-known for their Bachelor-related live-tweets that she ended up co-hosting the Bachelor in Paradise after-show with Chris Harrison in 2015, and the couple was asked to judge a group date during Hannah Brown's season of The Bachelorette.
During an interview with Cinema Blend, Biggs reflected on the American Pie franchise's longevity, saying, "We'll be in X country and people will say, 'I'm the Sitfler in my group, or I relate.' I meet these adults who are like, 'That was my movie growing up,' and you're like, 'The f--k? How old am I?'"
The role of Stifler was Scott's movie debut and helped make him one of the film's breakout stars, going on to appear in Dude, Where's My Car?, Road Trip, Old School and The Dukes of Hazzard, along with three follow-up Pie movies. (Presumably for a larger paycheck, Scott revealing in an interview with BBC1 that he was only paid $8,000 for the first film.)
He became so popular that he was even tapped to host the 2003 MTV Movie Awards with Justin Timberlake.
In 2011, Scott's rep confirmed to E! News that the actor had "voluntarily admitted himself" into a treatment center to receive "proactive treatment to address health and personal issues." The following year, Scott revealed he was engaged to former Victoria's Secret model Lindsay Frimodt, but the couple split in 2013.
Following a bit of a break from Hollywood, Scott made his comeback in 2018 when he was tapped to join Damon Wayans in Fox's Lethal Weapon after original star Clayne Crawford's controversial firing. "Seann is a fantastic addition to this already amazing cast," Michael Thorn, Fox's president, said in a statement. "Lethal Weapon is packed with action, drama and pure fun and we can't wait to see Damon and Seann together on screen."
Though he wed interior designer Olivia Korenberg in 2019, the pair finalized their divorce in 2024.
American Pie was only Klein's second film (following Election, another 1999 hit), and his turn as Oz, the sensitive and singing jock, made him a heartthrob. So did his romance with Dawson's Creek star Katie Holmes, who he dated from 2000 until 2005.
Following two DUI arrests, Klein voluntarily checked himself into a 30-day treatment program. "I realized I had to get it straight and realize what the f--k was going on because the me that I knew was slipping away," the actor told The Daily Beast in 2012. "At that point, f--k acting. Can I even get out of bed? I was a 31-year-old man with bills to pay, a dog to take care of, and my mother sick with worry. And I'm in jail again. How did I get here?"
Klein, who now stars on the hit Netflix series Sweet Magnolias, married Laina Rose Thyfault at the Rainbow Ranch in Montana in 2015, five years after they met at a mutual friend's wedding. The couple welcomed their first child, a son named Frederick Easton, in 2016. They welcomed daughter Isla Rose two years later.
Arguably one of the most well-known members of the cast thanks to her hit TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hannigan was initially offered the role of choir girl Heather, but turned it down when she read the screenplay and took a liking to Michelle, the surprisingly sexual band geek. Hannigan returned for the three follow-up films that focused primarily on Michelle and Jim's relationship. (Fun fact: Her iconic "Say my name, bitch!" line was ad-libbed in the moment.)
After American Pie, Hannigan, who was one of the oldest cast members at 24, went on to marry her Buffy co-star Alexis Denisof the same year the series ended in 2003. The couple have two daughters: Satyana and Keeva.
In 2005, Hannigan's next hit series, How I Met Your Mother, debuted and ran for over 200 episodes before coming to an end in 2014, with the star earning two People's Choice Awards for Favorite TV Comedy Actress during its run. In addition to voicing a character on Fancy Nancy, Hannigan placed fifth on Dancing With the Stars in 2023.
Thomas became one of American Pie's breakout stars after his character Finch's scene-stealing moments, including being forced to use the school bathroom and his illicit encounter with Stifler's mom, played by Jennifer Coolidge. And it turns out he had a strong friendship with Coolidge off-screen as well, as she revealed to LAist in 2012, "After the first movie, Eddie moved into my house, in real life, and he was this young, very pale kid that now isn't pale."
Their connection makes sense, given its still the first thing people think of when they see Thomas, as he revealed during an interview with James Corden. "People look at me, they point and they yell out, 'Stifler's mom!" he said. "Especially the Brits..."
Thomas went on to star in Freddie Got Fingered and Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (and its follow-ups), along with starring in several hit TV shows, including 'Til Death and CBS' Scorpion alongside Katharine McPhee. His most recent credits include voice work for American Dad and a role in 2024's Junction.
Known for his turn in Rookie of the Year (he was the rookie!) and A Kid in King Arthur's Court, Nicholas made the jump to more adult fare as the virgin-with-a-girlfriend Kevin in the 1999 teen sex comedy.
"I didn't really get a lot of flak in regard to that. Plus they kind of advertised it as an unknown cast," Nicholas told ReviewSTL.com of viewers not connecting him to his child star work. "So it took about seven years before the first person put two and two together, that I was the same guy. And now, I still have people that don't realize it."
In addition to the three sequels, Nicholas also starred in The Rules of Attraction, Halloween: Resurrection and appeared on Party of Five before playing Walt Disney in 2015's Walt Before Mickey. He most recently appeared in the mockumentary Underdeveloped.
Nicholas married DJ Colette in 2007, and in 2011 the couple welcomed son Nolan, with the actor telling E! News, "The first thing that Nolan did when he entered the world was grab one of the doctor's tools out of his hands. We might just have a future doctor in our midst!" The pair's daughter Zoe was born in 2016.
Nicholas has performed and toured with his band, The Thomas Nicholas Band, since 2008, and often plays shows when he makes appearances at various Comic-Cons around the country.
Because of Rookie of the Year's cult status, Nicholas actually throws out the first pitch once a year for the Chicago Cubs, along with singing during the seventh inning stretch.
Reid became a Hollywood It girl in the early 2000s after playing Vicky, Kevin's high school sweetheart. She went on to star in Josie and the Pussycats, Van Wilder and My Boss's Daughter. Reid had several high profile romances, including an engagement to then-TRL host Carson Daly in 2001.
But as she became a tabloid target, Reid shifted her focus to reality TV, competing on Celebrity Big Brother UK in 2011 and joining Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars in 2016 with then-boyfriend Dean May. But, the couple was kicked off when it was revealed they lied to get on the show.
Reid found surprise success when she starred in 2013's Sharknado, which kicked off Syfy's successful, six-part TV movie franchise. But after she was removed from a 2018 flight before take-off for causing what Delta labeled a disturbance, she made the choice to put her acting career on hold.
"When I took a break, it was because I needed to for myself," Reid explained to E! News in 2021. "I needed to get reinspired in a certain way. I traveled a lot and worked on myself a lot, to get more confidence in myself where, sometimes, when you've been kind of bullied and put down, it's like you get a bruise and you have to heal that bruise."
And now, Reid is taking back control of her career, with projects in the works as both an actress and producer, including the psychological thriller Masha's Mushrooms and Doggmen, featuring DMX's final on-screen role.
Suvari had quite the one-two punch in the late' 90s, earning hits on the comedy and dramatic side of things, thanks to American Pie, in which she played choir girl Heather, and American Beauty, which won Best Picture at the Oscars in 1999.
Suvari went on to star opposite Biggs in Loser, as well as the cult cheerleader comedy Sugar & Spice, playing one of the robbery-committing cheerleaders. She appeared in a string of independent movies throughout the aughts, and joined the cast of HBO's Six Feet Under in 2003. She also reprised the role of Heather in two of the three American Pie sequels.
Aside from memorable appearances in the American Horror Story franchise as Elizabeth Short a.k.a the Black Dahlia, and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kyle Richards' short-lived series American Woman, Suvari also played the late Nicole Brown Simpson in The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson. She will next appear as Osar winner Jane Wyman opposite Dennis Quaid's Ronald Reagan in a 2024 biopic about the late president.
In October 2018, it was confirmed that Suvari had tied the knot with Michael Hope. The couple met on the set of a Hallmark movie, I'll Be Home for Christmas, where Hope worked in the art department. It marks her third marriage, following previous unions to cinematographer Robert Brinkmann from 2000 to 2005 and then-concert promoter Simone Sestito from 2010 to 2012. In April 2021, Suvari gave birth to her first child, a son named Christopher.
Somewhat of an indie darling, Lyonne was thrust into the spotlight with her first blockbuster.
But Lyonne was arrested for DUI in 2001, beginning a string of headline-making behavior, including a 2004 charge for criminal mischief, harassment and trespassing for threatening to molest a neighbors' dog. In 2005, she ended up in intensive care with hepatitis C and a collapsed lung.
"I did not think I was coming back," Lyonne told Entertainment Weekly in 2012. "So I didn't really care. When you go as deep into the belly of the beast as I went, there's a whole other world going on and something like show business becomes the dumbest thing on planet Earth."
But Lyonne made her comeback in a major way, playing a drug dealer in Orange Is the New Black. "What was great was how little research I had to do for the role!" she cracked to Out. "Who'd have thought all those arrests would have been so terrific for my career?"
And she was just getting started, as Lyonne earned rave reviews for her series Russian Doll, which she co-created (along with Amy Poehler) and starred in. The hit show was "so personal"the actress told Elle, adding, "My family's story, my years through the ringer of being at death's door and addiction, and the experience of being a weirdo and an outsider in New York and in this business."
Lyonne dated Fred Armisen for six years before they split in 2021. In a New Yorker profile, she revealed she has a "lovely new man" in her life, whom she preferred not to name.
Every teen movie has its unattainable dream girl, and Elizabeth's Czech exchange student Nadia was American Pie's, with the movie turning her into one of the most drooled-over women in Hollywood. Elizabeth went on return for two of the follow-up American Pie movies and also starred in Scary Movie, Love Actually and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back before beginning her second career as a professional poker player in 2006.
After the end of her three-year marriage to actor Joseph D. Reitman in 2005, Elizabeth dated her Dancing With the Stars partner Derek Hough. She is now married to brand strategist Simon Borchert.
In addition to her poker career and parts in the 2023 special A Home for the Holidays and 2024's Plan B, Elizabeth is an animal activist who started her own foundation to help fight the poaching crisis in South Africa, where she moved in 2016, and all over the world. She competed on the inaugural season of CBS' Celebrity Big Brother, coming in ninth place.
One of the sole adults in the film, Levy did the most with his limited screentime, stealing every scene he was in as Jim's dad.
But Levy almost turned down the role—once offered to Bill Murray—admitting he found the script too vulgar. "When I first read the script, it scared me. I said, 'No, I can't do this movie,'" he explained. "My manager, at the time, said, 'Well, you should go and take a meeting?,' and I said, 'Why? It's just too out there for me. This is a kids' movie. Why would I want to be in a movie I wouldn't go see?'"
After meeting with the directors, he realized they were handling the subject matter in an adult way and signed on. He was also encouraged to improvise, something the Second City Sketch Comedy alum was happy to do.
"All the scenes in American Pie came out of an improvisation," he told Huffington Post. "I wanted the character to be a real dad. Like a real, corny dad who cares about their children. I wanted to be the kind of parent that the kids didn't want to hang with...[the original version] was a little creepy. So I made him more square."
One of the only original stars to appear in all of the franchise's films, the esteemed character actor went on to star alongside his son Dan Levy on their hit TV series Schitt's Creek. The father-son duo swept the 2020 Emmys with their creation.
Next up, he'll appear in season four of Only Murders in the Building.
Coolidge had quite the run in the late '90s and early aughts, thanks to the American Pie films and her turn as Reese Witherspoon's sidekick in Legally Blonde. While she had supporting roles in both, she made quite the impact (though it failed to land her the role of Lynette on Desperate Housewives, as she narrowly lost out to Felicity Huffman).
Aside from working opposite Hilary Duff in A Cinderella Story, Coolidge also starred on NBC's short-lived Friends spinoff Joey and appeared on According to Jim, Sex and the City and Frasier. After landing a prominent role on Secret Life of the American Teenager, Coolidge joined CBS' hit sitcom 2 Broke Girls until its cancellation in 2017 and played Brittany's mom on Glee. Plus, she is set to bend and snap for Legally Blonde 3.
Starting in 2021, Coolidge starred in the HBO hit series The White Lotus, earning a Golden Globe and two Emmys for her scene-stealing supporting performance.
Playing the OG movie MILF has had is perks for Coolidge, who admitted to using her time as Stifler's mom to her advantage in an interview with MTV. "Some restaurants, you know, they can't take you, and then you show up, and they're like, 'Oh, we can take you,'" she said. "I went to buy tickets to a concert, and they told me all the good seats were gone, and then he was a fan of American Pie and I ended up with these amazing seats. So there are some benefits to this job."
This story was originally published on Tuesday, July 9, 2019 at 9 a.m. PT.