Whatever happened to 'American Beauty' Mena Suvari?

Mena Suvari entered the 21st century as a major star. 'American Beauty' portrayed her as the iconic and ironic stereotype of a high school cheerleader. Provocative, controversial, and memorable as it was, the film made Suvari a celebrity. What happened to the brilliant actress?

It was 1999 and 'American Beauty' won five Oscars and three more nominations. Twenty years later, critics recognize that the film contained politically incorrect features and a hetero-patriarchal bias in drawing some of its female characters.

Despite its pitfalls, the movie has some brilliant interpretations - including that by Mena Suvari. The actress became an instant star and an example of charisma and elegance.

In 1999 Mena Suvari also starred in 'American Pie,' a comedy very different from 'American Beauty.'

Deep down, however, the roles had similarities. Their link was a portrayal of high school as a lost paradise - or as hell.

(On the photo: Mena Suvari with co-stars Wes Bentley and Thora Birch in 'American Beauty')

Mena Suvari has continued to make films after 'American Beauty' and 'American Pie'. However, no subsequent role has had the same repercussions as these two.

She appeared in films like 'Domino' and 'Final Fantasy VII,' and in series like 'Six Feet Under' and 'American Horror Story: Apocalypse'. Not the least of Hollywood's achievements, we may say.

Despite these great titles, the actress's career did not take off. Not even the two sequels to 'American Pie,' in 2001 and 2012, could help her break through.

Mena Suvari (born February 13, 1979) started working in showbiz early on. She was already modelling at age 12. And before she turned 18, she made the leap to cinema.

After spending five years as a model at the Wihelmina Models New York agency, the actress put her modelling career on hold to dedicate herself to film. Her first role was in the movie 'Nowhere' (1997).

After becoming a Hollywood star, Mena Suvari returned to fashion. She was a regular in Lancôme campaigns, and she launched her own clothing line as well.

Personally, Mena Suvari's life was quite a whirlwind. She got married three times before she was 40.

On 18 March 2000, the actress married Robert Brinkmann, a German film photographer. Mena Suvari was 21 while Brinkmann was about to turn 40. In April 2005, the couple divorced. They said it was due to irreconcilable differences.

Five years later, in June 2010, Mena Suvari married music producer Simone Sestito. The ceremony took place in a church in the Vatican, because Sestito's family was very religious. He even had two nuns in the family.

Various media reported that Mena had to cover up her tattoos during the wedding, out of respect for the Sestito family. In 2012, only two years after the ceremony, the couple divorced.

After the religious Italian husband, Mena Suvari dated tattoo artist Salvador Sanchez for a few years. They did not get married.

Mena Suvari's third marriage came in 2018. Michael Hope is not only her current husband but in the spring of 2021, he will become the father of the actress's first child.

In October 2020, the actress announced on Instagram that she was going to be a mother. The first baby of Mena and her husband Michael was born in 2021. Suvari was then 42 years old.

(Photo: Instagram, Mena Suvari)

The actress has continued to make films as well. In recent years, she played in more than a dozen movies. They haven't brought her the same success as 'American Beauty' and 'American Pie', but there's still more to come.

In March 2024, the movie 'Prey' was released in which Mena Suvari and Ryan Philippe had to fight men and animals in the Kalahari desert. For the future, there is the biopic 'Reagan,' about the actor-turned-president, in which Suvari plays the role of actress Jane Wyman. Another promising project is the sci-fi movie 'The Dresden Sun' in which she stars alongside Christina Ricci and Steven Ogg.

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