ABOUT THE CAST
JASON BIGGS (Jim) made his Broadway debut at age 13, opposite Judd Hirsch, in the critically acclaimed production of Conversations With My Father. From Broadway, the New Jersey-born actor has successfully segued into television and feature films. In addition to starring in American Pie, he has a development deal with Twentieth Century Fox Television, and his television credits include Drexel's Class with Dabney Coleman; ABC's Total Security; and As the World Turns, for which he received numerous accolades, including a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series.
Biggs currently resides in Los Angeles.
JENNIFER COOLIDGE (Stifler's Mom) has appeared in such recent studio films as A Night at the Roxbury and Trial and Error, as well as the independent films Left of Center, Restaurant, Lulu Askew and Sticky Fingers.
Her numerous television credits include guest roles on King of the Hill, House Rules, Seinfeld, The Monroes and The Jenny McCarthy Show. A series regular on the Roseanne Sketch Comedy Show and She TV, Coolidge has also appeared in comedy sketches on Not Necessarily the Election and The Greg Kinnear Show.
SHANNON ELIZABETH'S (Nadia) career encompasses film, television and stage. American Pie marks her third feature role in eight months. In addition, she has recently wrapped starring roles in Dish Dogs, a romantic comedy with Sean Astin and Matthew Lillard, and Seamless, opposite Kentaro Seagal.
Television credits include HBO's Arli$$, a guest-host turn on VH1's My Generation, as well as the telefilm Waiting on an Angel. Elizabeth's theater experience includes regional productions of The Glass Menagerie, The Wizard of Oz and My Fair Lady.
Originally from Waco, Texas, Elizabeth currently resides in Los Angeles.
ALYSON HANNIGAN (Michelle) is best known to television audiences for her regular role as Willow on the WB's Buffy the Vampire Slayer series. She recently appeared opposite Tom Everett Scott in the comedic film Dead Man on Campus.
Born in Washington, D.C., Hannigan moved to Atlanta at age two. Her breakthrough came at age 13 when she was cast as Dan Aykroyd's misunderstood daughter in the feature film My Stepmother Is an Alien. She went on to guest-star on a number of television shows, including Picket Fences, Roseanne and Touched by an Angel, and to co-star in two HBO productions, Switched at Birth and Bob Saget, In Dream State.
CHRIS KLEIN (OZ) recently starred in Paramount's Election, costarring Matthew Broderick and Reese Witherspoon. Klein had the opportunity to audition for the movie when he literally bumped into director Alexander Payne while he was scouting Klein's high school as a possible shoot location for the film.
Months later, when Klein was attending college at Texas Christian University, Payne cast him in the co-starring role of Paul Metzler.
Actor/writer/director EUGENE LEVY (Jim's dad) began his career on the acclaimed comedy series SCTV, on which he starred for eight seasons, portraying a pantheon of memorable characters, including Earl Camembert, Bobby Bittman, Alex Trebel and Stan Schmenge. Other television credits include Hiller and Diller; Mad About You; The Drew Carey Show; Billy Crystal's Don't Get Me Started; Disney's Bride of Boogedy; The Last Polka with John Candy; The Enigma of Bobby Bittman, which he also wrote and directed; Maniac Mansion, which he produced; and Showtime's Sodbusters, a feature which he also co-wrote and directed.
On screen he has appeared in Waiting for Guffman, which he also co-wrote; Almost Heroes; Father of the Bride 2; Multiplicity; Once Upon a Crime, which he also directed; Stay Tuned; Armed and Dangerous; Club Paradise; Splash; National Lampoon's Vacation and Running.
NATASHA LYONNE (Jessica) is quickly becoming one of Hollywood's most sought-after new talents. Recently seen in Fox Searchlight's comedy-drama Slums of Beverly Hills, Lyonne garnered much praise from critics everywhere for her portrayal of Vivian, the precocious young teenager whose life is being turned upside down by her blossoming figure and new neighborhood.
She recently completed production on New Line Cinema's comedy-adventure Detroit Rock City, opposite Eddie Furlong, which is set in 1978 and focuses on four young teenagers who embark on a wild adventure to attend a KISS concert. Lyonne then segued immediately into Matthew Bright's indie pic Confessions of a Trick Baby, the story of two young women who meet in prison and plot their escape to freedom, followed by But Im a Cheerleader, opposite Clea DuVall, in which she plays a naïve 17-year-old who is sent to a "re-hab camp" when her family and friends suspect that she may be a lesbian.
Lyonne began her professional career at the age of six when she starred as Opal in the original Pee-Wee's Playhouse. After a stint as a contract player on As the World Turns, she made her feature film debut as Meryl Streep's niece in the Mike Nichols film Heartburn, based on the book by Nora Ephron. Other film credits include Krippendorf's Tribe, opposite Richard Dreyfus and Jenna Elfman, Woody Allen's musical Everyone Says I Love You and the vampire thriller Revenant, co-starring Rod Steiger, Natasha Gregson Wagner and Casper Van Dien.
A native New Yorker, Lyonne recently enrolled at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts to major in film and philosophy.
THOMAS IAN NICHOLAS (Kevin) is best known to movie audiences for his lead role in Rookie of the Year opposite Daniel Stern. He made his film debut in Richard Donner's Radio Flyer and went on to star in films, including The Fear Inside, Judge &Jury, A Kid in King Arthur's Court and A Kid in the Arabian Nights.
Nicholas, who is touring on the road with his band The T.I.N. Men, has also appeared on several television shows, including Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, Sisters, Harry and the Hendersons, Who's the Boss, Married.. With Children and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids-The Series.
CHRIS OWEN's (Sherman) film credits include the recent teen comedy She's All That with Rachael Leigh Cook, Can't Hardly Wait with Jennifer Love-Hewitt and the coming-of-age film Angus. He was most recently seen in Joe Johnston's October Sky, the true story of a boy born in the coal-mining environment of West enlists his friends on a quixotic mission to launch their own rocket. Owen's other film credits include Major Payne, It Runs in the Family and Black Sheep.
He has appeared on numerous television shows as well, including Sister, Sister, Boy Meets World, Picket Fences, 7th Heaven and Social Studies.
TARA REID (Vicky) made her feature film debut at age 15 in Larry Cohen's Return to Salem's Lot. She was most recently seen in the modern thriller Urban Legend with Alicia Witt, Jared Leto, Joshua Jackson and Rebecca Gayheart; as well as The Big Lebowski, the latest comedy from the Coen brothers, in which she played Bunny Lebowski opposite Jeff Bridges, John Goodman and Steve Buscemi.
Additional film credits include Cruel Intentions with Sarah Michelle Gellar; I Woke Up Early the Day I Died, opposite Billy Zane; Around the Fire, the last script written by the late Ed Wood; and the independent film Girl, which debuted at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival, also starring Dominique Swain and Sean Patrick Flannery.
Reid's television credits include Days of Our Lives, California Dreams, Saved by the Bell and MTV's Like We Care. Her theater credits include Little Shop of Horrors and Grease, both with the Barnstable Players, as well as Vanities with the PCS Players.
SEANN W. SCOTT (Stifler) makes his feature film debut in American Pie. He has appeared on several television shows and television movies, including Sweet Valley High, Unhappily Ever After, Runaway Home, Born Into Exile and Something So Right. Scott also starred in the Aerosmith video "A Hole in My Soul" and had a regular role on the Internet series Chad's World.
He recently finished shooting American Beauty for DreamWorks, with Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening.
MENA SUVARI (Heather) made her feature debut in Gregg Araki's film Nowhere. Her other film roles include parts in the thriller Kiss the Girls, starring Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd; Slums of Beverly Hills with Natasha Lyonne; The Rage: Carrie 2; as well as the upcoming films American Beauty (in which she has the title role, opposite Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening) and Jean-Pierre Marois' Live Virgin.
Suvari's television appearances include guest-starring roles on such popular shows as Chicago Hope and E.R., and a recurring role on the ABC series High Incident.
EDDIE KAYE THOMAS (Finch) recently starred in The Rage: Carrie 2 and Nick Gomez's Illtown. He just completed filming James Toback's Black and White, costarring with Robert Downey, Jr., and Brooke Shields.
Thomas appeared in the Broadway production of The Diary of Anne Frank and originally made his Broadway debut at age 12 with John Guare and Sir Peter Hall in the Lincoln Center production of Four Baboons Adoring the Sun. His additional stage credits include Horton Foote's Talking Pictures, the La Mama production of LaMiseria, Richard III with the Brooklyn Shakespeare Company and many productions with the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute. He has guest-starred on Law & Order, Felicity, Are You Afraid of the Dark? and Late Night with Conan O'Brien.
Thomas is a graduate of the Professional Children's School in Manhattan.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
CHRIS WEITZ and PAUL WEITZ (Producer and Director) make their feature debuts in these respective filmmaking capacities with American Pie. The filmmakers, who are also brothers, previously collaborated on several screenplays, including DreamWorks' Antz and Madeline with Frances McDormand. They also coexecutive-produced the newest incarnation of the television series Fantasy Island.
Born in New York, the brothers are third-generation Hollywood pedigree. Their grandfather was the fabled agent Paul Kohner, who represented such legendary filmmakers as John Huston, Billy Wilder and Ingmar Bergman, and their parents are fashion designer/writer John Weitz and Academy AwardTM- nominated actress Susan Kohner.
Paul Weitz graduated from Wesleyan University with a degree in film, and in his last year there, his play Mango Tea with Marisa Tomei and Rob Morrow was produced by New York's Ensemble Studio Theatre and performed off-Broadway. The Ensemble Studio Theatre also produced his next work, Captive and All for One.
Chris Weitz earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in English literature from England's Cambridge University. He went on to work as a freelance journalist for various newspapers, including The Independent and The Sunday Times.
He subsequently gave up journalism to join the diplomatic corps. After passing the rigorous foreign service examinations, the State Department accepted him, but required that he wait a year before actually beginning his tenure. During that year, Chris and Paul, who had always collaborated creatively as youths, decided to write a screenplay.
ADAM HERZ (Screenwriter) makes his feature film debut with American Pie, a project for which his Michigan upbringing proved most helpful. Herz moved to Los Angeles in 1996 after graduating from the University of Michigan and began working a string of production assistant jobs. In his spare time, he drafted up two sitcom spec scripts, which caught the eyes of producers Warren Zide and Chris Bender.
In 1997, Herz signed with Zide and Bender as managers. Within six months, American Pie was on the fast track to production.
WARREN ZIDE (Producer) partnered with Craig Perry in 1997 to form Zide/Perry Films, a division of Zide/Perry Entertainment. He recently produced the action film The Big Hit, starring Mark Wahlberg and Christina Applegate. Zide/Perry Films' upcoming projects include New Line Cinema's Flight 180, a supernatural thriller currently in production; New Line Cinema's Gigantic, a spoof on Titanic; and Sony's Providence, a teen romance, both scheduled for production later this year. Zide/Perry Films also has numerous projects on its development slate and recently signed a two-year, first-look production deal with Warner Bros. to develop and produce feature films.
Though Zide Management was formed a mere five years ago, Zide is now one of the leading literary managers in the business, having sold more than 60 spec scripts in less than 60 months. Zide represents many young, rising screenwriters and directors, including American Pie's screenwriter, Adam Herz; Ben Ramsey, screenwriter of The Big Hit; and josh Schwartz, screenwriter of Providence.
He has earned a plethora of impressive press accolades, including being selected for Fade-In Magazine's "One of the Top 100 People in Hollywood You Need to Know," The Hollywood Reporter's "Next Generation" and the youngest manager to appear on Weekly Variety's "Top 10 Spec Salesmen" list.
In 1997, CRAIG PERRY (Producer) partnered with Warren Zide to form Zide/Perry Entertainment and helped launch the company's feature film division, Zide/Perry Films. Zide/Perry Films' upcoming projects include New Line Cinema's Flight 180, a supernatural thriller currently in production; New Line Cinema's Gigantic, a spoof on Titanic; and Sony's Providence, a teen romance, both scheduled for production later this year. Zide/Perry Films also has numerous projects on its development slate and recently signed a two-year, first-look production deal with Warner Bros. to develop and produce feature films.
Previously, Perry served as Vice-President of Development for Scott Rudin Productions, where he worked closely with many of the industry's top filmmakers. He was an associate producer on the boxoffice smash The First Wives Club and worked in developing such films as A Simple Plan, The Truman Show, In & Out, Ransom, Clueless, Lethal Weapon 3, Executive Decision, Richie Rich, Demolition Man and Twilight.
CHRIS MOORE (Producer) financed and produced his first independent feature film, Glory Daze, in 1996. He then co-produced the critically-acclaimed Good Will Hunting, starring Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. The immensely popular film garnered four Golden Globe nominations, winning the award for Best Screenplay. Good Will Hunting ultimately received nine Academy AwardTM nominations, winning for Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor.
Following Good Will Hunting, Moore produced the upcoming feature Best Laid Plans for Fox 2000, starring Reese Witherspoon. Moore's company, Fusion Studios, which has a three-year deal with Miramax Films, has a number of projects in development, including The Dreyfuss Affair, to be directed by Betty Thomas.
Moore established his entertainment career as literary agent for Intertalent Agency in 1989, where he represented numerous writers and directors in motion pictures, television and new media. In 1992, Moore left the company to take a position as an agent at ICM. The following year, he left the agency to pursue a career as a producer.
RICHARD CRUDO (Director of Photography) recently lensed the Miramax feature Outside Providence, starring Alec Baldwin. His additional film credits include Bongwater, starring Alicia Witt, Amy Locane and Patricia Wettig; Music From Another Room, starring Jennifer Tilly, Gretchen Mot, Jude Law and Brenda Blethyn; Rave Reviews, starring Ed Begley, Jr.; Critics and Other Freaks; and Tilt-A-Whirl. He also shot the acclaimed independent film The Low Life, starring Kyra Sedgwick, and David Mamet's screen version of American Buffalo, starring Dustin Hoffman and Dennis Franz.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Crudo earned a bachelor's degree from St. John's University and a master's from Columbia University. He began his film career as an assistant cameraman in 1978. During the 1980s, he served on the camera crew for a variety of features, including Broadway Danny Rose, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Ishtar, The Money Pit, Raising Arizona, The Silence of the Lambs, Ghostbusters 2, Dead Poets Society, Field of Dreams and Presumed Innocent. He became a director of photography in 1990 and worked on several independent features, among them the highly lauded black and white film Federal Hill.
PAUL PETERS' (Production Designer) first foray into features was the Alan Rudolph film Made in Heaven. His subsequent film credits include Simon Wincer's films The Phantom and Operation Dumbo Drop, Randall Miller's House Guest, Stan Dragoti's Necessary Roughness and Carl Franklin's critically-acclaimed drama One True Thing, starring Meryl Streep and William Hurt.
Peters received a CableAce Award for his work on Nick Roeg's Heart of Darkness, a CableAce nomination for the TNT telefilm Broken Chain, and an Emmy nomination for the CBS telefilm Lincoln. He holds an undergraduate degree in architecture from the University of Texas and a master's degree from Yale University.
PRISCILLA NEDD-FRIENDLY, A.C.E. (Editor), has an impressive career as an editor, covering more than 15 years. She first discovered her passion for film editing while attending Pierce College, where she worked part rime for producers, reading scripts. She then went on to study at the American Film Institute, where she worked in the editing room with Martin Brest on his thesis film Hot Tomorrows.
In addition to American Pie, Nedd-Friendly's credits as editor include Pretty Woman and Flamingo Kid for Garry Marshall, Tucker: A Man and His Dream for Francis Ford Coppola, Doc Hollywood for Michael Caton-Jones, The Evening Star for director Robert Harting, Clean Slate for Mick Jackson, Undercover Blues for Herb Ross, Guilty by Suspicion for Irwin Winkler and Lucas for David Seltzer. She worked as co-editor on Peter Weir's Dead Poets Society and as associate editor on An Officer and a Gentleman, Urban Cowboy and American Gigolo.
Nedd-Friendly is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and American Cinema Editors.
DAVID LAWRENCE's (Music) career as a composer encompasses numerous film, television and musical recording credits. In addition to American Pie, his film credits include Hi-Life for director Roger Hedden, Sleep With Me for director Rory Kelly and Camp Nowhere for director Jonathan Prince.
For Showtime he has scored Steel Sharks and Moving Target, and for HBO, Terminal Rush. Lawrence's television series work includes Beverly Hills, 90210, Ask Harriet, Brotherly Love, Dogs Best Friend, The Great Mom Swap and Muppet Mini Classics. His recording credits include works with such groups as Earth, Wind & Fire, Diane Schuur and The Power of Seven.
LEESA EVANS' (Costume Designer) credits include writer/director David Koepp's film Stir of Echoes, starring Kevin Bacon; Showtime's feature A Soldier's Sweetheart with Skeet Ulrich and Kiefer Sutherland; the black comedy The Last Slipper, directed by Stacy Title, starring Cameron Diaz; as well as Title's newest feature Let the Devil Wear Black, starring Mary-Louise Parker and Jacqueline Bisset. Other film credits include Clueless, Powder and Leaving Las Vegas, on which she collaborated as an assistant designer.
In addition to her film credits, Evans also styles commercials and music videos.