Whatever Happened To: The Cast of Angus

I grew up during the 90s, so I spent both my childhood and adolescence in that decade and reaped all the pop culture benefits that entails. One movie from 1995, Angus, is more of a cult film. I first saw it in the latter part of elementary school, and rediscovered it in my teens. It held up surprisingly well, as both a decent comedy and a more dramatic portrayal of high school troubles. It's on Netflix if you want to check it out, and someone also uploaded the whole thing to YouTube.

The plot focuses on Angus Bethune, a freshman who is unexpectedly elected as king of the freshman Winter Ball alongside his longtime crush, Melissa LeFevre. Unfortunately, the vote has clearly been rigged by a bully, Rick Sanford, in an attempt to embarrass Angus. But with his family and best friend supporting him, Angus is encouraged to take advantage of the opportunity to sweep Melissa off her feet.

So what happened to the main cast of the film?

Charlie Talbert (Angus Bethune)

Photo credit: allmovie.com

Angus, in his own words, is "a fat kid who's good at science and fair at football." Throughout the film, he's taking steps to attend a science school where he hopes he won't be tormented like he is at the public school. He's something of an outcast, with few friends. He sometimes responds to his bullies with violence, but Angus also shows resilience and strength in facing challenges.

Photo credit: Facebook

Charlie Talbert, now 35, landed the role in Angus after joking around with the movie's director at a Wendy's in Illinois. Talbert has stayed in acting and has continued making films to this day, though the list suggests that they have been mostly on the low-budget end. He last played a tuxedo store manager in Geek USA and, according to his LinkedIn profile, life imitates art since Talbert has worked as a store manager at Jos. A. Bank Clothiers since 2008 (do you have one in plum?). He still lands some roles, including One Night Alone now in the filming stage, and does some stand-up comedy as well.

Chris Owen (Troy Wedberg) 

Photo credit: torrentsofinsanity.tumblr.com

Angus met his geeky best friend Troy when defending him from Rick in elementary school. Troy, a dentist's son, is unabashedly geeky and claims to be knowledgeable in what's cool and how to get the ladies. In one of the movie's sadder scenes, however, he says he's like Angus in that he often wishes he was somebody else.

Photo credit: assignmentx.com

Chris Owen, now 33, is good friends with Talbert in real life, with the two co-starring in several movies. Owen had something of a breakout role as Chuck Sherman ("The Sherminator") in American Pie and its sequels and spinoffs. He also had a lead role in October Sky and guest roles in a number of TV shows. Although his IMDB profile suggests Owen is still making movies, this site says he's also working as a waiter in a sushi restaurant.

Ariana Richards (Melissa LeFevre)

Photo credit: galleryariana.com

Melissa has been Angus's love interest for years, ever since he saw her take on someone who insulted her at a roller rink. Although she starts dating Rick, Melissa is kind and clearly doesn't care for his behavior. She is secretly bulimic and, much to Angus's surprise, nervous about what other people think of her.

Photo credit: katu.com

Ariana Richards might be best known for her role as Lex in the blockbuster Jurassic Park, which was released two years prior to Angus. She also had a number of roles as a child, starting with a spot on Golden Girls, and played Mindy Sterngood in Tremors. Now 34, Richards has earned a B.S. in Drama and Fine Art from Skidmore College and won acclaim as a portrait artist (you can see some of her work here). Richards still makes forays back into acting, including a reprise of her original role in the 2001 film Tremors III.

James Van Der Beek (Rick Sanford)

Photo credit: cineplex.com

Rick has bullied Angus since kindergarten, and Angus has replied on numerous occasions by breaking his nose. Rick and Angus are on the football team together, but it hasn't exactly brought them closer together. Rick is constantly looking for new ways to embarrass Angus, who loathes Rick  but also envies him for his popularity and the fact that Melissa is his girlfriend.

Photo credit: hollywoodreporter.com

Angus was Van Der Beek's return to acting after a voice-acting roles in the 1986 anime Castle in the Sky and an episode of Clarissa Explains It All. He got his big break in 1998 when he was cast as the title character in the teen drama series Dawson's Creek, which ran through 2002. He had bit parts in a number of other TV series and plays a fictional version of himself in Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23. Van Der Beek, now 36, has also done a few comedic shorts on the website Funny or Die.

George C. Scott (Grandpa Ivan)

 Photo credit: cineplex.com

Grandpa Ivan is always trying to get Angus to believe in himself, having a life philosophy of "Screw 'em! Who cares what anybody thinks?" Such a belief has led him to get engaged to a much younger woman, much to his daughter's chagrin. Angus looks up to his grandfather, but is also fond of verbally sparring with him and waking him up from naps with a record of "Reveille."

Photo credit: cineplex.com

Scott was already a renowned actor at the time of his role in Angus. He is probably best known for his Oscar-winning performance in Patton as well as Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. His turn as Grandpa Ivan would be one of his last credits, although he would appear in five TV movies and the film Gloria before his death in 1999 at the age of 71.

Kathy Bates (Meg Bethune)

Photo credit: cinema.de

 Meg Bethune is Angus's mother, who has raised him on her own since his father died of a heart attack. She works as a trucker (with the CB handle of "Bruiser") and is excited about the possibility that Angus will get into a science school. It's also suggested that Meg faced bullying herself when growing up.

Photo credit: starpulse.com

Kathy Bates was also well-known at the time the movie came out, winning an Oscar for her portrayal of Annie Wilkes in Misery and starring in Fried Green Tomatoes and Dolores Claiborne. Her credits after Angus include Molly Brown in the mega-hit Titanic and recurring roles on Six Feet Under and The Office. Now 65, Bates is finishing up work on the movie Tammy and starting work on one called The Great Gilly Hopkins.

Salim Grant (Mike)

Photo credit: cinema.de

One of Rick's two cronies, Mike joins the trio in tormenting Angus and Troy. He pokes some fun at Rick as well, commenting that Rick is a lousy dancer. Mike is not quite as determined to humiliate Angus as Rick, occasionally acting more good-natured toward him and trying to get Rick to ease up when he physically assaults Angus near the end of the movie.

Photo credit: soundcloud.com

Grant, now 36, got his start as a child actor who appeared in three Barney and Friends videos and the 1990 movie Ghost Dad before appearing in Angus. He also played R.J. "Hollywood" Collins in Saved by the Bell: The New Class as well as a suspect in L.A. Confidential. His roles grew more scarce after that credit, but he did several short videos in 2012. Grant has pursued a music career as well, working with Snoop Dogg and performing under the stage name Autobotic, and currently owns the company Rising Platform Productions.

Kevin Connolly (Andy)

Photo credit: cinema.de

Andy is another one of Rick's cronies and a little more willing to take part in the pranks orchestrated by Rick. Nevertheless, he applauds Angus when his dance with Melissa goes well and seems to have gained more respect for him by the end of the movie.

Photo credit: vanityfair.com

The same year that Angus came out, Connolly started playing Ryan Malloy in the series Unhappily Ever After, appearing in 100 episodes. He began to appear in films after this series concluded, including John Q, The Notebook, and He's Just Not That Into You. Connolly also played Eric Murphy in the HBO series Entourage, which concluded in 2011. Now 39, Connolly will appear in the 2014 movie Reach Me and is rumored to be in an Entourage movie to come out the next year.