Seann William Scott (born October 3, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying
Steve Stifler in the
American Pie trio of teen comedies. He played
Bo Duke in the
film adaptation of
The Dukes of Hazzard and has also
voice acted in films such as the
computer animated Ice Age: The Meltdown, and the sequel
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.
Scott, the youngest of seven (each of his parents had three children from previous marriages), was born in
Cottage Grove, Minnesota, the son of Patricia Ann (
née Simons), a homemaker, and William Frank Scott, a factory worker.He was inspired to become an actor while working at the local movie theater and seeing all the movies he could watch free. He graduated from Crestview Elementary School and Park High School. After high school, Scott moved to Los Angeles, where he was "discovered" in a talent search competition. His first professional gig was on television in the music video for Hole in my Soul by
Aerosmith. Soon he appeared in
Chad's World, a gay-themed TV show broadcast on the Web by the short-lived
Digital Entertainment Network.
Scott's first commercial success came with the 1999 movie
American Pie as the bully
Steve Stifler, a role he reprised in two sequels. Though the character of "Steve Stifler" propelled Scott into the public consciousness, the actor has mentioned in a variety of interviews his fear of
typecasting, which has led to him choose to play different types of characters post-American Pie such as hapless
nerd role in the film
Final Destination and a harmless stoner character in
Dude, Where's My Car? alongside his real-life best friend,
Ashton Kutcher.
