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Interviews with the Cast of "American Pie 2"

 More of this Feature

Additional Interviews

• Jason Biggs (Jim)
• Shannon Elizabeth (Nadia)
• Alyson Hannigan (Michelle)
• Chris Klein (Oz)
• Eugene Levy (Jim's Dad)
• Thomas Ian Nicholas (Kevin)
• Tara Reid (Vicky)
• Mena Suvari (Heather)
• Eddie Kaye Thomas (Finch)
 
 Related Resources

• Mena Suvari Movie and Fan Sites
• Links to Chris Klein Websites
• Recent Romantic Releases
• Calendar of Upcoming Romantic Releases
 
 From Other Guides

• Guide to Action/Adventure Films
• Movies and TV Shows for Teens
 
 Elsewhere on the Web

• Official "American Pie 2" Website
• "American Pie 2" Fansite

Page 8

SEANN WILLIAM SCOTT (Stifler)

Were you happy that Stifler got more to do in this one?
Yeah, I don't think I would have done it otherwise. I just felt like it was really important. The only reason I thought it would be fun to see this character again is if he is more outrageous, and not so much of a one-note character. You get a chance to see that he's harmless. I thought it would be a nice dynamic to see him with the other guys more. I was pretty happy.

What's going to happen in #3?
Number 3? You couldn't pay me $30 million to do #3 (laughing). I actually think there is a place for the movie to go. The weird thing was after watching it, I thought they could do a third one - I just won't be in it. I'm so grateful for the first two, it's allowed me to see you guys (the media) a lot more often, doing other things.

What if they allowed him to change in a third "American Pie?"
I don't want to be known as a jerk forever. I don't think I would do it. The weird thing is I was watching it yesterday, and I thought it was really pretty funny. The thing is, we know these guys, and to see good things happen to them makes you happy for them. I think it's real risky to do a third one. My way of thinking is that we were lucky with the first one - don't do a sequel. And then I was thinking that we're lucky we pulled this one off.

You mean you don't like being a role model?
I love that, yeah, a good one, hopefully. But I don't think Stifler's the greatest example of a good role model.

So you thought you were lucky the first one was funny, and you went ahead and did the sequel with mixed feelings?
Yeah, we're lucky we pulled this one off. I don't think the audience will go away disappointed. Whether they'll like it as much as the first one, I don't know.

How do you know when enough is enough, as an actor?
To do a sequel is so weird, you don't really think about it. When I decided to do it I had to watch the first one over because I forgot what I did, and he's such a specific character. The last three weeks I felt like I was having a great time with the guys, it's great to be with the people who helped start off your career, it just wasn't fun to play the character anymore. I felt like I've done it - it's done - but I still feel a bit of responsibility because so many kids like that character; I don't want to disappoint them. I want to be as funny, or be as fun, as the first time around.

Can you talk about gross-out humor because obviously there's a lot of it. Any reflections on that?
I think it's tricky. That was my thing about the sequel. I think Universal was really smart about it because people just aren't responding to that anymore. You just get to the point where it's like they're running out of ideas - everything has been done. It kind of ran its course. I think the things that worked in this one aren't necessarily any grosser than in the first one. But the gross-out scenes in the context of a movie - if they are done right - and if they come from a grounded place, like with Stifler getting peed on - that's a nice parody of the first movie with the beer, then that's kind of funny. And he's one of those characters where you want to see things like that happen to this guy. You want to see how he's going to react to it, how far it can go without it being too silly, because I think there have been movies over the last couple of years that have been gross just for the sake of being gross. Hopefully kids will like this one. If it does well, I'm sure there will be a whole spawn of movies trying to duplicate it again, but I think it's not very appealing anymore.

How do you know when you are shooting gross-out scenes if they are acceptable as opposed to tasteless?
I think that the thing with this movie is that we've learned to trust ourselves. It's the second time around, we know each other, we know each other's quirks and mannerisms, and I think it's well written. I know it's kind of weird to read a scene like that and think it's well written, but if it's done right. It's always tricky, it's always a risky thing.

Any worries about crossing the line?
I think at this point we've seen so much, I don't know what else they could really do. You know what it is? It's so simple - it's all about the money. Studios are like what is successful, what formula works, and if a formula fails or make some money. "American Pie" was lucky, it made money like "Something about Mary," and "Dumb and Dumber." "Roadtrip" kind of duplicated and went after the "American Pie" route. This ("American Pie 2") is touching upon the same things as the first.

What's it like working with J.B. Rogers, who was the First Assistant Director on the original?
I think it was really important for me. He had a lot of ideas with the first one that were little subtleties that really worked well. I think it was important to have someone who was part of the first one who had the experience. "American Pie," the first one, was so weird because it wasn't a masterpiece - it wasn't "The Godfather" - but it touched so many people, they remember the movie, they liked it - or some of them hated it - but if it had been a completely different movie, it would have been unrewarding. So that was cool. And it's so funny, it's amazing for J.B to go from where he did as a First Assistant Director to come to this, and I think he did a great job. It's one thing to have a great experience while filming it - you never know if it's going to translate onscreen - but yesterday I realized he did a great job. It's tough to bring all these characters back and try to make sure everybody has their storylines, and make sure everybody's happy and especially to come into a situation like this, with the expectations everyone has. I think he did a great job.

You had to kiss Jason Biggs. How would you rate him?
You know what? We realized that these two characters in this situation, trying to get what we want, especially Stifler with Finch and Jim - you see him at his most vulnerable state. He thinks he's taking one for the team. I rate him (Jason Biggs) at a 10.

Plus, you could get nominated for MTV's "Best Kiss."
That was the only reason why. We got screwed for "Dude, Where's My Car." I was like that was actually the only reason why we did it. I was like "Dude, I don't want to kiss you, but as long as we get nominated for Best Kiss."

More Interviews with the Cast of "American Pie 2" - > Next Page / Return to Page 1


Photos@2001 Universal Pictures

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