American Pie was a veritable right of passage, in
film form, for every teenage boy who grew up in the late nineties. Its hilarious, tongue-in-cheek portrayal of the realities of being an adolescent rang true for just about every high-schooler who watched it. I mean, the movie really did a great job at depicting all the insecurity which comes hand-in-hand with developing body parts and surprising sexual urges. And its portrayal of the complexities of high-school friendships and burgeoning experiences of love, even won it acclaim from critics, who otherwise shrank from all the crude humour.
It's now 18 years later, but people still continue to watch American Pie. However, it's evident that the world has most definitely moved on. The actors themselves, have gone onto have illustrious careers, some in the entertainment industry, and others in different fields. One American Pie
actress that people have forever been intrigued about, however, is Shannon Elizabeth, who took quite a serious U-turn after playing the hot exchange student, Nadia.
After playing foreign exchange student, Nadia, and protagonist, Jim Levenstein's love interest, Shannon Elizabeth went on to star in several other seminal noughties films such as Scary Movie and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
. She then transitioned to the silver screen, starring in television programmes such as That Seventies Show and Punk'd, before appearing on Dancing with The Stars in 2008.
She also had a cameo role in 2012's American Reunion.
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But her "second career", as she refers to it is poker. While it may seem an odd choice, in 2006, Shannon was referred to as one of the leading celebrity poker players, and she's competed in Las Vegas a number of times.
The 44-year-old is also a keen animal activist, environmentalist and proud vegan. She recently fronted a campaign which encouraged people to adopt a turkey, and not eat it, during Thanksgiving.
In regards to the actress's love life, she's reportedly dating the music producer, Russell Simmons, who is the co-founder of the hip-hop music label, Def Jam Recordings.
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But perhaps one of the most recognisable ladies from America Pie is Alison Hannigan, who played the role of Michelle. The 42-year-old has gone on to play respected parts on stage and in film with some of her notable roles including Lily Aldrin in the long-running, How I Met Your Mother, and of course, Willow Rosenberg in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Mena Suvari is another memorable face from the 1999 feature. In the same year she played Heather in American Pie, Mena earned a BAFTA nomination for her performance as Angela Hayes opposite
Kevin Spacey in American Beauty. Since then she's modelled for Lancôme cosmetics, and is a long-time activist for the African Medicinal and Research Foundation.
But while Shannon Elizabeth has surprised us all with her penchant for poker, and her otherwise well-rounded life, for many of us, she'll
always be Nadia.
