Alyson Hannigan spent just seven days filming her scenes in American Pie. As she rationed it, the experience was nothing more than “a little side gig” from shooting her WB series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Hello, this was a microscopic-budgeted comedy featuring a no-name young cast and a set piece that involved self-gratification with a pastry. The clapboard might as well have read “straight to DVD.”
“I had no idea that 25 years later, people would even still remember it — let alone, like, that I’d be doing an interview about it,” Hannigan says. “This lovely little thing just turned into an amazing part of history.”
More like an amazing slice. Released July 9, 1999, American Pie grossed $235 million and nearly a billion worldwide during a three-month theatrical run. A sequel was rushed into production (and released in 2001), followed by two more installments plus four spinoffs under the American Pie Presents banner. But big numbers don’t tell the full story: The movie also brought the raunchy sex comedy back into the mainstream, leading to the likes of Road Trip, Superbad, and arguably the entire Vince Vaughn early-aughts oeuvre. And it remains such a cultural force with quotable lines and a surprisingly poignant message about friendship that one Taylor Swift recently waxed “I’m watching American Pie with you on a Saturday night” in her song “So High School.”
All because a group of hapless male pals made a pact to lose their virginity before graduating from high school.
Their quest to get touched for the very first time led to much hilarity. Poor Jim (Jason Biggs) not only attempted to go to third base with an apple pie; his disastrous seduction of foreign-exchange student Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth) went viral before the concept of “going viral” had seeped into our consciousness. Street-smart Jessica (Natasha Lyonne) gave her friend Vicky (Tara Reid) tips for her boyfriend Paul (Thomas Ian Nichols) and took a $200 bribe from Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas) to spread rumors about his skills in bed. Jock “Oz” (Chris Klein) sang James Taylor to woo shy choir student Heather (Mena Suvari). Steve Stifler (Seann William Scott) reeked of obnoxiousness and was mortified that his mom (Jennifer Coolidge) had obtained “MILF” status.
But Hannigan’s Michelle delivered the most consistent laughs. Why yes, for all the guys’ bravado, this meek geek who loved to reminisce about her summers at band camp and relax by playing Bach on her flute turned out to be the most sexually adventurous of all. And after blithely revealing her prowess to her exasperated friend Jim via a single gasp-inducing line of dialogue, she happily deflowered him on prom night. The fact that Hannigan was at that point known for playing the sweet and straight-laced Willow on Buffy added to the deliciousness.
Given that middle-age spares no one, Jim and Michelle ended up as exhausted married parents in 2012’s American Reunion. As for Hannigan? She’s a beloved TV veteran thanks to Buffy as well as her nine seasons as Lily Aldridge on the sitcom How I Met Your Mother. Last year, she made it to the finale on Dancing With the Stars (and finished a respectable fifth). Yet Michelle remains close to her heart — and she still owns a Tall Oaks Band Camp T-shirt to prove it. “I should pull it out and see if I can still squeeze into it!” she says. Now Hannigan bares all (metaphorically, jeez!) about the movie.
How did you get a hold of the script back in the day?
I remember my manager sending it to me and saying, “You’re either going to love it or hate it. People are very divided.” So I was very intrigued, obviously. I think it was called East Grand Rapids High or some hard-to-remember name. He also said, “Just pick whatever character you like the best and we’ll send you on the audition for that.” I loved Michelle right away.
Why did she appeal to you?
I loved the way she talked. There were question marks after pretty much most of her sentences, including the ones about her times at band camp. I could hear her voice in my head immediately. And she was quirky. Then, obviously, you’re sort of thinking one thing the whole time and she surprises you at the end. I was already playing, like, the perfect person on Buffy, and Michelle was the opposite.
What was your audition process like?
First I met with the casting director and I read it with all the inflections. But he was like, “Okay, now let’s do that again, but don’t make her so quirky. We want to believe that [she and Jim] should be together.” He told me to make her “normal” when I read for the directors. I was confused and really frustrated. I remember calling my manager’s assistant and saying that I didn’t even want to go to the callback, and the movie wasn’t going to be any good. I’m totally throwing the casting director under the bus, but this is what happened. Facts. Sorry.
Then what happened?
It turns out that on the day of the callback, I went to lunch with my manager and had, like, 12 refills of iced tea and then sat in massive traffic on the way to the audition. I had to pee and just as I was washing my hands, they went and got me for the read. I had no time to relax and was still amped up naturally on all this caffeine and need-to-pee energy, and I just came out as Michelle. So the decision was really made by my bladder.
How did you meet the cast? You were a bit older than them.
I auditioned with Jason, but I hadn’t heard of him. I got to meet everybody at the table read and see who was cast. I remember sitting next to Seann William Scott, and we were all in this big circle of chairs. We read the script, and I was really excited. I told my friends that the movie was going to be good.
The boys in those movies are all friends, but the girls are kind of siloed in their respective relationships. Did you sense any solidarity among them?
I don’t even think I saw the girls during filming. I don’t even remember if I met any of them. Just for press junkets and stuff. I was very isolated in my scenes. I just remember the boys. I have a memory of the boys bonding really quickly and already being best friends. I think there was a scene in the classroom — I feel like Thomas was in there and maybe even Eddie — and the guys were being goofy [off-camera] and punching each other in appropriate places. That was their big game. So it was me and a bunch of high-school boys.
Did the lack of girl bonding bum you out?
I didn’t even think about it. Those are just how the scenes worked. They had to clear my schedule for Buffy — I think I was the only person on a show at the time, so I was just glad it worked out.
Did you see them more while filming the sequel?
The second one I worked 11 days because I was still on Buffy. For the third one, I worked weekends and that was brutal because there was a day when I worked all night on American Pie and drove straight to the Buffy set. It was like a 36-hour day or something. Crazy.
What was your relationship like with Jason?
I loved him right away. He was adorable and sweet.
Then what’s your good American Pie story?
The best story from the whole thing was that, you know, it was a low-budget movie with all these tiers of negotiations. There was an A-tier and a B-tier. I think I was on the bottom C-tier with Seann.
Wait, what does that mean?
In regards to pay. So it’s just scale plus 10 [percent to an agent]. There’s no negotiating on the C-tier because the character is not that important. I was like, “Okay, fine.” It was seven days and it was more of a passion project. Then, in the contract, there was a sequel clause. I said, “Look, I’m getting paid scale plus 10. I’m not going to sign for a sequel. That doesn’t make sense.” I sound like I was being really difficult, but I just thought it was silly. So they took that [clause] out, which ended up being really nice for me when I did the sequel. There were a couple smart things I did back then.
When did you see the finished product?
I remember going to Universal [Studios] for a cast screening and seeing it and just walking out being like, Oh my God, I can’t wait for my friends to see this movie. It’s so much fun! And then they started doing test screenings, and it tested off-the-charts positive. it was going to be a winter release, but they moved it up to the summer. But it was up against the summer of Star Wars [Episode 1: The Phantom Menace]. I thought that would be the death of us.
So you were surprised by its success?
Completely! I feel like I got a call from some Universal executive on a Saturday morning congratulating me because they had seen the tracking numbers. And then the numbers continued to get better and better.
How did your Buffy co-stars react to the film?
Well, this is how old the movie is: We were given VHS tapes before the movie came out to show our friends. I remember screening it for Seth Green and Sarah [Michelle Gellar] in the trailer while we were filming. Sarah was polite and was like, “It’s not really my cup of tea.” But Seth and I had a sillier sense of humor. He enjoyed it and said his friends were going to love it.
And decades later, Taylor Swift loved it too. You’re a proud Swiftie, so go ahead and walk us through this seminal moment.
Yes! So I had my little countdown waiting for the album to drop. I texted my kids, “don’t bug me, say ‘good night,’ just pretend I’m not here,” because I am going to listen to this album without any interruption. I listened to the first part, went to sleep, and woke up to, Holy cow, she’s released a second part! I started listening to it, and when I got to “So High School,” I was like, What?! I thought maybe I was still sort of sleeping and imagining it. But when I heard it, I was freaking out. I woke up my entire family who seemed less enthusiastic than I’d like them to be. Then I called a friend, and she and I had a nice freakout together. I was so happy. Basically, I was on the date with Travis [Kelce] and Taylor.
You posted something on Instagram too, no?
So Sasha [Farber] was my partner on Dancing With the Stars. And I did a little story on Instagram and he filmed it, and he posted it on his feed. It was the two of us driving around listening to “So High School.” He posted it on his feed, and it was liked by Taylor Swift! Like, Why wasn’t it on my feed?!
Swift fandom aside, isn’t it also just validating that the movie still hits like that?
Well, it’s not like I ever sat there and thought, Oh, I wonder if Taylor and Travis have watched American Pie. But I do have to say that in the past 25 years, people ask me, “Oh, what do you get recognized for?” And I always say that it depends where I am. If I were at a football game, it would definitely be American Pie. So it’s not that big of a leap to think that Travis had watched it.
Please say there’s some sort of cast text chain in which you all talked about this.
There isn’t! But I should have texted Jason. That would have been smart, but I just didn’t know he was going to be as big of Swiftie as I wanted him to be.
So do you ever see anyone in the cast?
I don’t, actually. I feel like movies in general, you think, These are going to be my friends for the rest of my life! Then our lives go in different directions. I’m going to be friends with you if our kids go to the same school. But the bond is still there. And if I saw anyone in the cast, it would feel like we did the movie yesterday.
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