Whatever Happened To Squints From The Sandlot?
To many people, Chauncey Leopardi may be unrecognizable today. Yet he might be instantly familiar as a child to any fans of the 1993 comedy "The Sandlot," where he portrayed the nerdy but adorable Michael "Squints" Palledorous. The coming-of-age sports film sees a group of youngsters play at their neighborhood baseball sandlot, with newcomer Scotty Smalls (Tom Guiry) joining the gang on their adventures.
Leopardi's performance was one of the most memorable, even outshining veterans such as James Earl Jones, and his ploy to steal a kiss from the local pool lifeguard, Wendy Peffercorn (Marley Shelton), by pretending to drown has become a fan-favorite moment from the film. Yet, as is the case with many child stars, Leopardi has struggled as an actor in his adult life and has not had the career that some people might have expected following his performance in the film.
Like his other castmates from "The Sandlot," Leopardi has certainly changed a lot over the last three decades, but that doesn't mean he hasn't been keeping himself busy. Here's why the former child star hasn't made it big in Hollywood, plus everything he has been doing since his time in the cult classic movie.
He starred in Casper, Houseguest, and Safe after The Sandlot
While most moviegoers will undoubtedly remember Chauncey Leopardi from "The Sandlot," it was far from his only major film role during the 1990s. None of them might have quite matched his performance as Squints but he found steady work as a child actor throughout the rest of the decade, until the turn of the century.
Fans of the 1995 film "Casper," which stars Malachi Pearson as the titular ghost and Christina Ricci as his love interest Kat, might recognize the actor from the movie's opening scene. Two youngsters — known as Nicky (Leopardi) and Andreas (Spencer Vrooman) — can be seen exploring Whipstaff Manor before the main action begins, setting the scene for the film's creepy central location.
He also appeared in the 1995 Randall Miller comedy "Houseguest" with Sinbad and Phil Hartman. Leopardi portrays Jason Young, the 11-year-old son of Hartman's character, who dreams of being a basketball player. In the same year, he appeared in the psychological horror film "Safe" as Rory, one of the residents of a town where Julianne Moore's Carol White suddenly becomes ill.
He had a recurring role in Freaks and Geeks
As film roles became less frequent by the end of the 1990s, Chauncey Leopardi didn't give up on his acting career. He largely transitioned to television and found himself as part of the cult classic teen drama series "Freaks and Geeks." One of Judd Apatow's earliest projects, the show saw the likes of James Franco, Seth Rogen, Linda Cardellini, and John Francis Daley come to the public's attention as a group of high school students at the fictional William McKinley High School in Michigan, who find themselves struggling with teen life as outcasts.
Leopardi was not part of the main cast but still had a significant role in "Freaks and Geeks." He portrayed Alan White, a recurring character in the show and a bully to Sam Weir (Daley), Neal Schweiber (Samm Levine) and Bill Haverchuck (Martin Starr). From his introduction in the pilot episode, Alan becomes something of a nemesis for Sam and constantly threatens to beat him up despite the protestations of many other students. However, he eventually ends his feud with the geeks after one of his pranks lands Bill in the hospital, with the pair bonding as a result.
Leopardi was part of the supporting cast for Gilmore Girls
A few years after his recurring stint in "Freaks and Geeks," Chauncey Leopardi landed a role in the comedy-drama series "Gilmore Girls" on The WB. The show, which followed the lives of single mother Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and her daughter Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel), ran for seven seasons and a total of 153 episodes between 2000 and 2007. Leopardi appears in five episodes of "Gilmore Girls," in Seasons 3, 4, and 5, as Kyle, who attends Stars Hollow High School along with Dean (Jared Padalecki), Jess (Milo Ventimiglia), and Rory.
A good friend of Dean's, Kyle often hosts parties, and it's at one of these gatherings that Jess and Rory get into an argument. The pair subsequently break up, with Jess leaving town. Shortly after this, Kyle also departs to join the Navy and only returns to attend Dean's bachelor party, where it's revealed that he has been injured and now has a hook to replace a missing hand. Dean later moves in with Kyle and the character helps to raise money to open a town museum, along with many of his former classmates.
As an adult, his roles dried up
By the time the 2000s rolled around, Chauncey Leopardi was leaving his childhood days behind and began looking for acting work as an adult. However, it was around this same time that roles began to dry up and the actor found himself without many gigs. While his recurring roles in both "Freaks and Geeks" and "Gilmore Girls" kept him on TV screens, it soon became clear that Hollywood was seemingly uninterested in Leopardi now that he was no longer a child star.
Just before landing the role in "Freaks and Geeks," Leopardi had minor parts in both "Snoops" and "Walker, Texas Ranger," although these were both one-off guest appearances rather than regular roles. Meanwhile, 2005 also saw him land a guest appearance in a 2005 episode of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," as well as joining the cast of the 2001 family comedy "Boys Klub."
Leopardi effectively retired from the acting world by the early 2010s, with only a smattering of credits since 2007. It's not clear whether it was due to a lack of work or if he voluntarily chose to leave the industry himself, but he has suggested that he would be willing to return to acting if the right role came along.
He reprised his role as an older Squints in 2007
The success of "The Sandlot" meant that the franchise continued in some fashion years after the first movie hit cinema screens. As you may have guessed, these subsequent films were not summer blockbusters. In fact, they didn't even have theatrical releases and were instead straight-to-video projects. The first, "The Sandlot 2," arrived in 2005 and followed an entirely new cast of youngsters who play baseball at the infamous sandlot. Legendary actor James Earl Jones, who portrayed Mr. Mertle in the original movie, was the only member of the cast to reprise his role.
2007 introduced a third film in the franchise. "The Sandlot: Heading Home" involved yet another array of characters and featured a bizarre time-travel plot. Chauncey Leopardi returned to the franchise as an older version of his character Squints, although he was the only member of the original cast to do so. He has also contributed to the television special "The Sandlot Reunion" and was featured in "Legends Never Die: The Sandlot Story," along with other members of the cast and crew from the first movie.
He took a break from acting and worked on his own material
Chauncey Leopardi began acting at a very young age. He first appeared on TV screens in 1990 as part of a series of commercials when he was just six years old, after being recruited by a talent agency when he joined his cousin at a meeting. A year later, he moved to Los Angeles with his mother and was able to land roles in more commercials and also television series, such as "Christine Cromwell" and "L.A. Law," as well as movies like "Father of the Bride" and "A Girl of the Limberlost."
It makes sense, then, that after a long career in the industry during which Leopardi almost completely devoted his childhood to acting, he might want to take a break from the craft altogether. In a 2008 interview, Leopardi explained that he "took a break from the acting game for a while" and that he was hoping to work on his own material in the future. He spoke about producing content and working on a variety of sketch comedy skits online, with some of the work landing on Funny or Die.
The actor didn't keep in touch with most of his co-stars
While Chauncey Leopardi has remained on speaking terms with some of the cast of "The Sandlot," as they regularly appear together for reunions and convention appearances, that isn't the case for many of his other former castmates from other series. While speaking to The Reel Place, the actor explained that he hadn't been in contact with anyone from "Freaks and Geeks" since the series ended. "You know, I talk to Martin Starr here and there," he said, "but I haven't seen Seth [Rogen], [James] Franco or any of those guys since we pretty much worked on the show."
Another co-star from "The Sandlot" that Leopardi lost contact with was Marley Shelton, who portrayed his love interest Wendy Peffercorn. The actor revealed in an interview that the pair didn't speak for more than two decades after they worked together on the movie. However, the pair have seemingly been back in contact in recent years, with a since-deleted social media post from Leopardi showing the pair speaking together.
His last major role came in the film Coldwater
Chauncey Leopardi's last confirmed screen role came in the 2013 independent film "Coldwater." He played a character known as Eddie, starring alongside P.J. Boudousqué, James C. Burns, Stephanie Simbari, and Nicholas Ashe Bateman. The thriller largely follows a teenage boy who has been sent to a juvenile prison, with the story charting not only his struggles in the facility with his new inmates but also detailing how he came to be involved in a life of crime in the first place. The project didn't end up having much of an impact, though, with mixed reviews from critics.
He is also listed as part of the cast of the Singaporean animated movie "Life with Quincy 3," as well as a supposed comedy known as "Oh! Squints III." However, there's no indication that this is even a real film, with many people suggesting it could be part of a hoax by an unknown person or group. Leopardi has also appeared as himself on a number of television series and documentaries, including "Today" and "Make the Right Choice."
Leopardi continues to interact with fans
One thing for sure is that Chauncey Leopardi has never taken "The Sandlot" or its fans for granted. He is well aware of the success the movie has had since it was released and the effect it had on a legion of fans who grew up watching it. "It's just something that obviously is a blessing," he told the Green Bay Press Gazette. "And I'm happy and blessed to have been able to touch so many lives and still be hugging people's kids and signing baseballs for them. It's crazy."
That might be why he has been so keen over the years to interact with fans and give back to those who helped make the film a success. He regularly appears at baseball games, signing autographs and posing for photographs with fans at Joannes Stadium, the home of the Green Bay Bullfrogs. Leopardi has also been a regular at conventions around the world, also appearing at fan events as part of a group of cast members from "The Sandlot" and in a personal capacity on his own. He has even appeared at sports collectors conventions to sign baseball cards made for the film.
He appeared in an Eminem music video
One of Chauncey Leopardi's only acting roles in recent years came in the music video for the song "Homicide" by Logic and Eminem. Released in 2019, the song comes from the album "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" and sees the two artists mock other rappers for their reliance on modern technology and a failure to deliver lines properly.
The video begins with Def Jam CEO Paul Rosenberg telling Logic that Eminem won't be available to appear in the music video. This leads to comedian Chris D'Elia being cast to play Slim Shady while Leopardi is chosen to play a fictional version of Logic, to ensure that both performers are being portrayed by stunt doubles rather than the real-life rappers.
Fans of Logic have previously pointed out that the rapper does bear a resemblance to the character Squints from "The Sandlot," looking like a grown-up version of the youngster. That's perhaps why Leopardi was chosen for the role. Meanwhile, D'Elia is well-known for his parodies of Eminem, performing impressions of the rapper in videos posted online.
Leopardi has grown cannabis for over 20 years and owns his own business
Outside of acting, Chauncey Leopardi has another passion that has consumed much of his life. The former child star began smoking cannabis when he was still a teenager at the recommendation of his doctor. He took a keen interest in cannabis and began to research the history of the drug as well as various different strains. A few years later, he discovered that medical recommendations provided an exemption for him to grow his own cannabis, so he quickly started experimenting. "And then I built a little room and that was kind of the first time I hung lights or started to grow plants, which was a disaster," Leopardi told LA Weekly.
Since that time, Leopardi has has more than two decades of experience growing his own cannabis. In the same interview, he explained that while the first 10 years were experimental, his skills improved considerably in the second. "I won't give myself credit for it," he said. "Obviously, I had plants in the ground back then, but I'll give myself like a good 10 years of solid actual seeing rooms through and having a decent quality product to put out there for the consumer."
Leopardi now owns his own recreational cannabis business in Los Angeles. Most of the products feature Squintz branding, a homage to his character from "The Sandlot."
The former actor has been in several relationships
Chauncey Leopardi has been in several relationships throughout his adult life. He was first married to Stefani Sells, with the couple initially getting together in 2000. The pair split in 2003 but didn't officially separate until 2013, when Sells filed for divorce, although the relationship apparently ended amicably. Leopardi was later in a relationship with Ellona Vinnitskaya. More recently, he married former NFL cheerleader Jennifer Leopardi, with the pair having a wedding ceremony at the start of 2022.
It also seems as if Leopardi has concentrated much of his time on his kids. The former actor has three children from his previous marriages and a daughter with Jennifer named Gabriella, with Leopardi regularly posting pictures of his family to social media. Speaking about his family life, he appears to prioritize his wife and children above everything else. "I have a family as well," he told People magazine in 2018. "I spend most of my time being a dad and a husband, a business owner, just working hard doing my thing."
He ran a podcast in 2020 and 2021
As a business owner who grows his own cannabis and offers a variety of products based around the drug, Chauncey Leopardi has become something of an expert in the field in recent years. However, it isn't something that he ever thought he would be doing when he first began growing cannabis in his 20s, and the process of legally selling it has taken some getting used to.
"I'm just ever inspired and just shocked bro," Leopardi told LA Weekly. "Just shocked that I'm walking fire departments through buildings and facilities. I'm shocked sitting in city planning meetings and with attorneys and talking about things at scale. And now to take brands elsewhere throughout the country."
Leopardi put his knowledge and enthusiasm for the subject to good use in 2020 when he started his own podcast. Hosted by the Haze Radio Network, "Picture Me Rolling" was a series that focused on Leopardi's love of cannabis, his adventures in becoming a legal seller of the drug, and what it was like developing his own unique strains. It was a long way from "The Sandlot."