What The Cast Of Freaks And Geeks Looks Like Today

NBC's comedy-drama "Freaks and Geeks" may have been a short-lived series, but its influence is still being felt today. Following the relatable exploits of misfit teens trying to make sense of high school life, the show lasted only one season before getting the ax, running for a mere 18 episodes from 1999 to 2000. But just because "Freaks and Geeks" came and went doesn't mean it's been forgotten. On the contrary, it's become a cult classic among those nostalgic for the early '80s as depicted by the late '90s. Not only that, but the show helped launch the careers of numerous big Hollywood names.

"Freaks and Geeks" was led by Linda Cardellini, who's certainly undergone a stunning transformation since the show premiered a quarter-century ago. And she's not the only one who went on to become a big star. From A-list actors like Seth Rogen and James Franco to sitcom superstars like Jason Segel and Busy Philipps, to cult-favorites like Samm Levine and Martin Starr and even blockbuster filmmakers like John Francis Daley, it's safe to say that some of your favorite movies and TV shows might never have existed at all if these performers hadn't had "Freaks and Geeks" as a launching pad. But that begs the question... what have the "freaks" and "geeks" been up to in the years since their time at William McKinley High School?

On "Freaks and Geeks," Linda Cardellini starred as the main protagonist Lindsay Weir, a gifted high school student trying to reinvent herself as a rebellious "freak." Before "Freaks and Geeks" first hit the airwaves in 1999, she had appeared in films like Nickelodeon's "Good Burger" and TV shows like ABC's "Boy Meets World." However, the short-lived NBC teen dramedy marked her very first leading role. That said, it would be far from the last time Cardellini shined as a main cast member.

Cardellini went on to play the beloved role of Velma Dinkley in director Raja Gosnell and screenwriter James Gunn's live-action "Scooby-Doo" movies in the early-to-mid 2000s. Later, in 2015, she joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Laura Barton, Hawkeye's wife, in "Avengers: Age of Ultron." She reprised that role in "Avengers: Endgame" in 2019 and in the "Hawkeye" TV series in 2021. Cardellini took on a second MCU role in 2023, reuniting with Gunn to provide the voice and motion-capture for anthropomorphic otter Lylla in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3."

Cardellini kept working with Gunn in 2024, voicing the character of Elizabeth Bates in his DC Universe animated series "Creature Commandos" on Max. On that note, in addition to her various live-action roles, the former "Freaks and Geeks" lead has certainly made a name for herself in the voice acting world. She's lent her voice to shows like Disney Channel's "Gravity Falls" and Cartoon Network's "Regular Show," among others.

Lindsay Weir was the de facto face of the "freaks" on "Freaks and Geeks." Meanwhile, her younger brother Sam Weir — played by then-child star John Francis Daley — was undeniably the face of the "geeks." Daley has continued acting into adulthood, appearing in an episode of Comedy Central's "Drunk History" as recently as 2019 and starring in the film "5-25-77" as recently as 2022 (though that film had been in production since 2004). However, Daley appears to have found his true passion as a writer and director.

Alongside filmmaking partner Jonathan Goldstein, Daley found his first major success as a screenwriter when he co-wrote the 2011 comedy "Horrible Bosses." The two went on to pen the 2015 "Vacation" reboot and the 2023 fantasy comedy "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," both of which they also directed together. Much like his TV sister Linda Cardellini, Daley has made a name for himself in the world of superhero blockbusters as well. He and Goldstein co-wrote the script of the 2017 Marvel movie "Spider-Man: Homecoming" alongside a number of other writers. The two also received story treatment credits on the 2023 DC flick "The Flash." Daley and Goldstein were set to write and direct "The Flash" at one point, though they ended up leaving the project. In a 2023 interview with Variety, the duo shared that their version of "The Flash" would have been very different from the version that was ultimately made.

"Freaks and Geeks" is a show that launched the careers of just about every young member of its main cast. That said, James Franco — who played teen rebel Daniel Desario on the NBC series — arguably became the most successful of the bunch. Shortly after "Freaks and Geeks" ended, Franco landed the key role of Harry Osborn in the 2002 "Spider-Man" movie. He went on to reprise that role in the film's two sequels, which released in 2004 and 2007, respectively. Many high-profile projects followed, with Franco even securing a Best Actor nomination at the 83rd Academy Awards for his role as real-life mountaineer Aron Ralston in the 2010 biographical drama "127 Hours."

However, scandal would eventually chase Franco out of Hollywood, with multiple women accusing him of sexual misconduct in 2018. The women alleged that Franco had sex with them while he was their acting teacher. This culminated in a lawsuit where Franco agreed to settle for $2.2 million. Not only that, but Franco was also hit by allegations of physical violence by none other than former "Freaks and Geeks" co-star Busy Philipps. In her 2018 memoir, Philipps said that Franco was a "f***ing bully" on the show's set and recalled an incident where he harshly shoved her to the ground after she lightly hit him in the chest for a scene (per Variety). Despite all the scandal, Franco slowly began to appear in films again starting in 2024.

On "Freaks and Geeks," Samm Levine played Sam Weir's friend and fellow "geek" Neal Schweiber. Shortly after "Freaks and Geeks" ended in 2000, he made a number of one-off appearances in other TV shows, such as ABC's "Spin City," CBS's "Yes, Dear," and UPN's "Freedom." He also had support roles in comedy films like "Not Another Teen Movie" in 2001 and "National Lampoon's Barely Legal" in 2003. Then, in 2005, he appeared in an episode of CBS's "How I Met Your Mother" — which starred his former "Freaks and Geeks" co-star Jason Segel.

Levine's biggest role post-"Freaks and Geeks" arguably came in 2009, when he played a member of the titular military unit in writer-director Quentin Tarantino's World War II film "Inglourious Basterds." Levine continued to land various film and TV roles after "Inglourious Basterds," appearing in everything from "I Love You, Beth Cooper" in 2009 to an episode of the The CW's "90210" reboot in 2011. Levine even briefly reunited with John Francis Daley in 2015, when he made an uncredited cameo in the aforementioned "Vacation" reboot that Daley co-wrote and directed. Levine later landed a lead role in rock singer Poppy's 2018 TV pilot "I'm Poppy," though a full series seems unlikely to materialize.

Seth Rogen starred in "Freaks and Geeks" as the wise-cracking Ken Miller, a member of the "freaks" clique and the best friend of James Franco's Daniel Desario. And while Franco carved out a successful career for himself after the show ended, Rogen has certainly given him a run for his money. As both an actor and a filmmaker, Rogen has made his mark on the world of big-screen comedy thanks to films like "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," which relaunched his career in 2005. He followed that up with "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" in 2007 as well as many other projects in subsequent years.

Of course, Rogen and Franco seemed to be attached at the hip at one point. In addition to playing best friends on "Freaks and Geeks," they had a similar relationship in real life for more than 20 years. The two went on to appear opposite one another in movies like the stoner comedy "Pineapple Express," the political satire piece "The Interview," and the comedic biopic "The Disaster Artist." However, Rogen ended up cutting ties with Franco in 2018 amid the latter's various scandals. Since then, Rogen's career has only continued to thrive. He's one of the executives behind "The Boys," one of the most popular shows on Prime Video. He's also garnered attention for his voice roles in films like "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" (which he co-wrote), "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," and Disney's remake of "The Lion King."

Jason Segel played Nick Andopolis on "Freaks and Geeks." A member of the "freaks," Nick was an aspiring musician who idolized Rush drummer Neil Peart. Interestingly, while Nick was the first role Segel played on TV, he actually wasn't the actor's first musically-inclined character. The year before "Freaks and Geeks" premiered, Segel played Mike in the cult-classic film "SLC Punk!" — starring opposite the likes of Matthew Lillard and Devon Sawa.

Segel later found massive success when he joined the main cast of the CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother." The series premiered in 2005, five years after "Freaks and Geeks" ended. It went on to run for nine seasons through 2014. Along the way, Segel continued to grace the big screen, often playing in comedies like "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," "The Muppets," and "Sex Tape." He even reunited with Seth Rogen in the 2007 comedy "Knocked Up." More recently, Segel has served as both the creator and star of the Apple TV series "Shrinking."

In a 2021 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Segel confessed that he rarely watches shows and movies he's starred in more than once. But while a "Freaks and Geeks" re-watch isn't on his to-do list, he still looks back on the show fondly. "It was this really amazing cast before we really knew anything," he said. "I mean, a few of us had done some little jobs here and there but this is where we really cut our teeth."

Rounding out the main trio of "geeks" on "Freaks and Geeks" was the tall and awkward Bill Haverchuck, played by Martin Starr. After the show ended, however, Starr struggled to find steady work. According to a 2016 profile published by Wired, he went as far as to fire his agent and even tried to walk away from acting altogether. However, things started to turn around for Starr in 2007, when he landed a role in "Knocked Up," once again starring alongside the likes of Seth Rogen and Jason Segel. (Much like Samm Levine, Starr had previously made a guest appearance in an episode of the Segel-starring "How I Met Your Mother.")

His career revitalized, Starr subsequently appeared in films like "Adventureland" and starred in popular TV shows like "Silicon Valley" on HBO and the binge-worthy "Party Down" on Starz. Like several of his former "Freaks and Geeks" co-stars, Starr also made a name for himself in the world of superhero blockbusters. His first brush with the Marvel Cinematic Universe came in 2008, when he played a minor role in the Edward Norton-led film "The Incredible Hulk." Starr subsequently played teacher Roger Harrington in the 2017 MCU film "Spider-Man: Homecoming." This marked a reunion with fellow "geek" John Francis Daley, who co-wrote the movie's script. Starr reprised his role as Mr. Harrington in "Spider-Man: Far From Home" in 2019 and "Spider-Man: No Way Home" in 2021, though Daley was not involved in those sequels.

On "Freaks and Geeks," Becky Ann Baker portrayed Jean Weir, the mother of Lindsay and Sam Weir. Baker, then known as Becky Gelke, actually got her start as a stage actress in the late 1970s. She later made the jump to film and television in the mid-1980s. Before "Freaks and Geeks" premiered in 1999, Baker's small-screen work primarily consisted of made-for-TV movies and one-off appearances in popular shows like "Frasier" and "Star Trek: Voyager."

After "Freaks and Geeks" — her first main role on a TV series — came to an end, Baker went back to primarily making one-off appearances, with her credits including shows like "Sex and the City," "Elementary," and "Nurse Jackie." That said, she did have a recurring role on the HBO dramedy "Girls" from 2012 to 2017. Baker turned 70 years old in February 2023 and shows no signs of slowing down. Since then, she's appeared in episodes of "Ted Lasso," "The Girls on the Bus," and "Elsbeth," as well as in movies like "Jackpot" and "All Happy Families." In "All Happy Families," she even appeared alongside Jason Segel's former "How I Met Your Mother" co-star Josh Radnor.

Coincidentally, Becky Ann Baker also happens to be married to fellow actor Dylan Baker, who starred alongside James Franco in the trilogy of 2000s "Spider-Man" movies. Becky herself had a brief cameo in "Spider-Man 3" in 2007. She played Helen Stacy, the mother of Bryce Dallas Howard's Gwen Stacy.

The fourth and final member of the Weir clan in "Freaks and Geeks" was family patriarch Harold Weir, played by Joe Flaherty. Flaherty stood out from the rest of the show's main cast in that he was already an established name in the world of TV comedy by the time it premiered — particularly in the United States' neighbor to the north. He is perhaps best known for being part of the original cast of the Canadian sketch comedy series "Second City Television," or "SCTV." Prior to 1999, he had also made minor appearances in films like "Back to the Future Part II" and "Happy Gilmore."

Flaherty remained a recurring figure in the world of TV after "Freaks and Geeks" ended, appearing in episodes of shows like "Even Stevens" on Disney Channel and "That '70s Show" on Fox and even lending his voice to animated series like MTV's "Clone High" and Disney's "Teamo Supremo." Flaherty eventually retired from acting, with one of his final credits being in an episode of the HBO Canada series "Call me Fitz" in 2012. On April 2, 2024, Flaherty's daughter Gudrun announced that the veteran actor and comedian had passed away the previous day following a short battle with an undisclosed illness (per NPR). Back in 2018, Flaherty had taken part in a Martin Scorsese-directed Netflix special looking back at the legacy of "SCTV." However, the special has yet to actually air as of 2024.

The final main cast member of "Freaks and Geeks" was Busy Philipps, who portrayed Kim Kelly in the series. Initially the only female member of the "freaks," Kim hated Lindsay Weir at first, viewing her as nothing but a poser. However, the two eventually came to become good friends. Shortly after "Freaks and Geeks" ended, Philipps landed another major role on a teen drama series, playing Audrey Liddell in the final two seasons of The WB's "Dawson's Creek" from 2001 to 2003.

Those would be far from her last main roles on TV shows, as Philipps subsequently starred in "Cougar Town" on ABC and TBS, "Vice Principals" on HBO, and "Girls5eva" on Peacock and Netflix. Additionally, she's made one-off appearances on shows like "Entourage," "Community," "New Girl," and — like many of her former "Freaks and Geeks" co-stars — "How I Met Your Mother." Along the way, Philipps has also appeared in films like the "White Chicks," "He's Just Not That Into You," and the 2024 musical remake of "Mean Girls."

On top of her acting, Philipps has become an outspoken advocate for abortion rights in the United States. "My body belongs to me, not the state," she said while addressing Congress in 2019 following the passage of Georgia's controversial six-week abortion ban (via CBS News). "Women and their doctors are in the best position to make informed decisions about what is best for them. No one else."