Sometimes, all it takes is one role to change your career.
This is especially true of Seann William Scott, who became a huge star from "American Pie."
His role as the crude, rude, dim-witted dude Stifler gained him enough notoriety that would
impact his career forever.
Before "American Pie," Seann William Scott, himself, was not a particularly noteworthy
performer.
He had zero feature film credits to his name, and his most notable forays into performing
were appearing in a Sunny Delight commercial and an Aerosmith video.
At age 28, he was working at the Home Depot and going on lots of auditions — and it
was that conviction that eventually resulted in "American Pie."
Part of his early struggles can be attributed to how Scott initially saw himself.
Scott told NBC in 2008,
"I always anticipated having a career in sports.
[But] movies were my passion.
[...] I was reminded that I could have a life outside of being a stressed out professional
athlete.
I realized I could use the same work ethic and apply it to another career that I love.
I graduated early, told my coaches I wasn't going to play sports anymore, and moved to
LA.
I got lucky, got a manager, and that was that."
When Scott was first hired for the role of Stifler, it hadn't been written as a major
character.
In fact, Stifler only had a passing presence in the story.
Scott told “Entertainment Weekly” in 2019,
"The Stifler character was in two or three scenes and he was written to be such an a**hole
that I was like, 'I don't even know if I'd want to play this guy.’
So I was like, 'I'm going to rewrite a bit of it, make him the guy you hate to love.'
He's probably insecure.
He's like the guy who wants to be loved the most."
As it would turn out, his meager scripted presence in the production resulted in a mediocre
payday.
Despite portraying a fan favorite character in the sex comedy, Scott only scored $8,000
for playing the role.
The summer of 1999 began with moviegoers counting down the days to the first new "Star Wars"
movie in 16 years.
By the end of that season, many had shifted to discussions of the over-the-top raunch
of "American Pie."
A good deal of this talk involved Seann William Scott, who embodied a classic version of abrasive
masculine immaturity, and whose commitment to the part turned what could have been a
nuisance into a fan favorite.
Scott's appeal as Stifler was so strong that it even lasted well into the various "Pie"
sequels.
While reviewing 2012's "American Reunion," Roger Ebert mentioned his affinity for Scott's
Stifler while calling him a highlight of the film.
Ebert shared,
"Seann William Scott [...] has made the role of Stifler his own, and seems able to morph
his face into an entirely new person [...] Narrowed eyes, broad maniacal grin, frightening focus,
still with all the zeal for seduction and adventure he had in high school.
The ingenuity with which he destroys the jet skis of two jerks can only be admired."
Even in these more enlightened times, a 2019 retrospective review of the original "American
Pie" that criticized the feature's politically incorrect elements still found time to praise
Scott's performance.
Years removed from when "American Pie" first hit theaters, Scott can still drum up enough
praise to remind everyone why he became the film's biggest breakout star.
In the wake of "American Pie," Scott's status as an actor was significantly elevated.
His first appearance, in 2000's original "Final Destination," was a brief one that had him
meeting a graphic demise on-screen.
After that, Scott headlined the Todd Phillips feature "Road Trip," another raunchy comedy
that cast him among a group of students who hit the road in pursuit of sexual delights.
Other roles around this time included "Dude, Where's My Car?" and "Evolution", all playing
off the dim, horny jock persona he suddenly had all to himself.
It's an age-old Hollywood question: Do you lean into your notoriety and risk the diminishing
returns of repetition?
Or do you try to blaze a unique path, and risk alienating your newfound fans?
Scott shared in 2003 about his struggle with such questions, saying,
"I was like ‘nah, being the funny guy, that's not why I came to LA.’
But I appreciated it, and I realized that this is really just a blessing to be able
to make people laugh."
When a comedy becomes as successful as "American Pie," it's only a matter of time before talk
turns to a sequel.
"Pie" presented a pair, almost immediately.
The first of these arrived in 2001 under the name "American Pie 2."
A smash hit, its success got "American Wedding" greenlit, which would arrive in 2003.
Suddenly, the franchise wasn't about teenage sexual escapades anymore, but instead, watching
the characters navigate various stages of young adulthood.
Through it all, Stifler remained an anchor of immaturity who could always be counted
on for crazy antics and ill-advised situations.
Scott admitted in 2003,
"I don't know why people like the character.
[It's because of] the way [his friends] played off that character.
Because, if they would have dismissed him and just treated him as an utter a**hole [...] as
an audience member [you’d be] like, 'Whoa, he's just a jerk.'
[...] [But] they just play with him, and they accept what he does."
“You’re a very unpleasant individual, you know that?”
While films like 2001's "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" and 2003's "Old School" cast
Scott in supporting roles, he also got plenty of opportunities to become a leading man.
In 2003, he was cast opposite fellow-rising-star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in Peter Berg's
so-so "The Rundown."
He also signed on for 2005's high-profile reboot of "The Dukes of Hazzard."
Despite a massive ad campaign, "Dukes" bombed both critically and at the box office.
A string of ill-conceived comedies followed, many trying to recapture that Stifler magic.
2007's "American Loser" cast him opposite Gretchen Mol as a rudderless adolescent adult.
That same year, "Mr. Woodcock" put him opposite Billy Bob Thornton as an adult looking to
get revenge for his adolescence.
2008's "The Promotion" had Scott competing with John C. Reilly to get past the adolescent
ways that had stopped them from advancing in their careers.
In 2008, however, Scott made a dent with Paul Rudd on one of his first star vehicles, "Role
Models."
Trying to put some space between his "Models" character and Stifler, Scott said at the time,
"He's not really mean to anybody.
He's actually a very optimistic guy.
But clearly [...] the whole [...] physicality of it, and [...] that vibe is very similar.
But, I had wanted to add something that made him a little more irreverent."
"Role Models" earned significantly better reviews than "Hazzard" and Scott's other films
of this period, and also fared better at the box office.
But still, now a decade after his "American Pie" breakthrough, Seann William Scott was
still trying to overcome the same type casting limitations.
Like many other comedic actors before him, Seann William Scott tried to branch out with
more serious films.
It was a smart endeavor, but, unfortunately, it seems he may have just bet on the wrong
horses.
His big, high-profile leading man play was undoubtedly "Bulletproof Monk."
The 2003 film was based on a comic book.
It was also the directorial debut of in-demand music video director Paul Hunter and starred
Chow Yun-Fat.
This was a high-profile action film that had potential to launch a franchise, with Seann's
character as its Luke Skywalker-like hero-in-training.
What could go wrong?
To answer that question, ask yourself: When was the last time you heard anyone talk about
"Bulletproof Monk?"
Around the same time, he signed up for what was a very in-demand movie — "Southland
Tales."
It was filmmaker Richard Kelly's feverishly-anticipated follow-up to "Donnie Darko," a movie that
seemed to have announced the arrival of Hollywood's newest auteur.
Unfortunately, the production became notoriously troubled, the film was rumored to be largely
incoherent, and after years of delays was released with little fanfare.
In more recent years, Scott has appeared in the grisly thriller "Bloodline" and the crime
drama "Already Gone," but neither of them fared much better.
In 2010, Seann William Scott kicked off a new decade by connecting with one of the most
prolific names in 1990s indie cinema.
Filmmaker Kevin Smith probably seemed like a safe bet, as did starring opposite the legendary
Bruce Willis.
What Scott most likely didn't anticipate, however, was a troubled production that had
the original title dropped against Smith's wishes, the director and leading man coming
to despise each other, and the entire experience being so miserable that Smith hasn't made
a studio film since.
Scott was, however, one of the funnier parts of the finished film.
Despite "Cop Out" faring poorly with critics and the box office, it did earn the actor
a dream role — well, maybe.
Smith even considered his collaboration with Scott to be the inspiration he needed to push
"Hit Somebody," a hockey comedy based on a Warren Zevon song, across the goal line.
In 2010 Smith explained,
"Seann, for me, was the key into the character.
This dude has something in him that you can just see hangs so well on Buddy.
He's got some pain that's going to work out well."
As you may have guessed, "Hit Somebody" has still not made the leap from the page to the
silver screen.
It was going to be two movies, then one movie again, then a mini-series, and eventually
Smith just read the script on his podcast in 2018.
Whether the film is ever resurrected — and whether Scott will still play the part — seems
doubtful at this point.
Fortunately, if you want to see Scott in the world of hockey, we still have his two “Goon”
films.
In 2013, Seann William Scott returned to the role that had made him a household name with
"American Reunion."
It was the fourth official installment of the franchise and had the "American Pie" gang
return for more raunchy escapades.
This gave Scott the opportunity to return to the role of Stifler, now a decade older
but only marginally wiser.
“Yeah!
That’s perfect.”
Scott didn't need any compulsion to come back to the franchise that made him.
In fact, according to him, it was his idea.
He shared,
"It was a long time in the making because I pitched the movie three years ago.
The idea of bringing everybody back for a high school reunion.
I [said] three years to go, 'Wow, how much fun is it going to be to play Stifler in his
30s'.
It was a blast."
Two decades after his "American Pie" breakthrough, Scott is still a working actor — although
it's hard to argue that any of his several dozen roles has come close to Stifler as far
as mass appeal and awareness.
In 2018, he took over the lead role in the FOX cop show "Lethal Weapon."
Though he was coming on to a program fraught with behind-the-scenes drama, Scott's presence
on the show gave it a much-needed positive boost in publicity.
Intriguingly, Scott apparently pursued the role himself once he saw that the show's original
lead, Clayne Crawford, had been fired by the program.
Though "Lethal Weapon" with Scott in the lead role lasted just one season, that wasn't the
end of his TV work.
Later in 2021, he'll be back on the FOX network with "Welcome to Flatch," a docu-comedy that
aims to be "The Office" for small-town America.
A comedic project, "Flatch" seems like it could represent a fundamental shift in Scott's
career, as he plays an authority figure in the lives of some younger troublemakers.
Perhaps this is the beginning of Sean William Scott reinventing himself as a middle-aged
actor whose days of frivolity are behind him.
It has now been well over two decades since Scott's life was changed forever through the
antics of Stifler in "American Pie."
Though it has had its ups and downs, he has insisted that he has no regrets about the
career-launching role.
Scott said in 2018,
"I didn't think Martin Scorsese was going to cast me in his next movie.
I understood why I wasn't getting cast for other things.
I would have been a distraction.
I kind of pigeonholed myself, but I felt really lucky to get the chance to make people laugh."
Given that the combined worldwide grosses of his movies have exceeded $1 billion, it
is hard to feel too bad for Seann William Scott.
Some gambles have paid off, others have not.
But talk to any actor, and they'll most likely tell you they'd be happy to have a decades-long
career with more than 30 TV and film projects under their belt.
As Scott himself put it in 2018,
"I just got lucky with 'American Pie.’
That movie gave me a career."
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