Where Is The Childlike Empress From The NeverEnding Story Now?
There are three main human characters in the 1984 fantasy film "The NeverEnding Story," though one of them appears only briefly in the movie. In addition to Bastian (Barret Oliver) and Atreyu (Noah Hathaway), there's The Childlike Empress, and she's quite possibly the most important character in the film. Without her, nobody might be able to stop The Nothing, the dark force that threatens the land of Fantasia.
Tami Stronach played The Childlike Empress when she was 10 years old, and by that point in her life, she'd experienced far more than most of her peers. Stronach grew up in Iran to archaeologist parents, but the family moved to Israel when the Iranian Revolution began in 1979. They lived in the U.K. for a while before settling in California when Stronach was eight, so her father could teach at the University of California, Berkeley. Stronach's early life as a refugee didn't keep her from her passion, musical theater, which she pursued throughout her childhood.
Discovered by a casting director while rehearsing as Piglet for a production of "Winnie-the-Pooh," Stronach auditioned and beat out "Poltergeist" star Heather O'Rourke for the role of The Childlike Empress, which solidified her place in fantasy pop culture. If the character is more familiar to you than the actor's name, that's because Stronach didn't capitalize on her feature film debut to launch a career on the silver screen — far from it. Instead, Stronach pursued other artistic endeavors, though she never shied away from her time playing The Childlike Empress in "The NeverEnding Story."
A talk show appearance in Germany landed her a recording contract
While Americans know the film "The NeverEnding Story" to be set somewhere in North America, it is a solidly German movie: it was directed by a German (Wolfgang Petersen), it's adapted from an incredibly popular fantasy novel by a German author (Michael Ende), and it was shot at a German studio (Bavaria Studios). Because of this, much of the film's promotion occurred throughout Germany, bringing a young Tami Stronach to that country.
Stronach didn't speak German, but during one stop on the national talk show circuit, the hosts asked if she had picked up any of the language. While she hadn't, Stronach had one charming ace up her sleeve, as she explained to Vice in 2021: "I said, 'I don't know any German, but I know that song "99 Luftballoons."' So, being a ham, I sang it for them." That's the kind of fun thing you'd expect to see in a talk show interview with a child actor, and it paid off with a new opportunity: After seeing Stronach's performance, a German producer offered to have her record some songs.
The family planned on returning to the States in three days, so the producer wrote the songs that evening. The following day, they recorded the tracks, and Stronach filmed a music video and did a TV show appearance. Everything happened so quickly that the Stronach family didn't need to change their flight plans. Stronach recorded a music video for "Fairy Queen," and that was the entirety of her childhood singing career.
Sudden fame brought Stronach a lot of unwanted attention
When a movie hits theaters, it's typically a good thing for the people involved. Everyone from the lighting and makeup folks to the actors and director reap the benefits of a successful film, and they promote it as much as possible. "The NeverEnding Story" was a modest success at the global box office, but unfortunately for Tami Stronach, the kind of attention thrown her way was intensely creepy, wholly unwarranted, and borderline criminal.
Stronach was only 11 when the film came out in 1984, but that didn't stop a plethora of men from acting like her age was just a number. Several grown men discovered the family's address and loitered outside to see The Childlike Empress in real life. While that's creepy enough for any child to contend with, she also received an engagement ring from a German man. Stronach told Vice, "I found someone who was traveling to Germany and sent it back because I didn't want to take this person's money. I felt so guilty."
Years later, she was impressed with "Stranger Things" star Millie Bobby Brown and her ability to handle similarly unwelcome attention far better than she did at her age. The Stronach family opted to push beyond the creepiness and put "The NeverEnding Story" in the past, while Tami herself chose not to pursue further film projects and focused on growing up instead. "I didn't really talk about it ['The NeverEnding Story'], and it just kind of melted away," she explained.
She transitioned to dancing after her brief acting and singing career
Initially, Tami Stronach's interests steered toward musical theater, which didn't entirely change after "The NeverEnding Story." Instead of pursuing a career in film or television, Stronach joined a theater company called The Flying Machine, which produced original plays. Still, acting wasn't her primary interest, and since she stumbled into it by chance, Stronach figured she could always return as an adult. Stronach put acting behind her and joined a dance conservatory in New York City, dancing throughout her 20s.
As a professional dancer, Stronach took part in numerous exhibitions around the world. While she continued to dance, Stronach also got into choreography early in her career and created performances that were shown everywhere, from Lancaster Square in London to studios in New York City and elsewhere on the globe. In addition to creating multimedia dance performances, Stronach's choreography helped bring her back into the world of filmmaking. She collaborated with other choreographers to create an ensemble mashup of '80s and '90s dance moves from a variety of pop culture sources.
The ensemble incorporates elements of "Dirty Dancing," "Footloose," "Flashdance," and "Strictly Ballroom." Stronach's choreography demonstrates her penchant for creativity, and she's incorporated elements of her own life in her dance. "Mother Tongue" is a solo that utilizes aspects of Persian folk songs and other elements related to her native Iran, making the piece a powerful and evocative exploration of her history through movement.
She got married and had a daughter
Tami Stronach danced professionally for the next 20 years, primarily in New York City, and during that time, she also started a family. She met and eventually married actor, writer, and producer Greg Steinbruner, despite being adamant for a long time about staying away from romantic relationships with anyone in the creative arts. But it isn't easy meeting people outside the industry when everyone around you is related to it, and the couple ended up meeting through the theater, which took up much of Stronach's time.
The Stronach clan soon expanded as they welcomed a daughter, Maya, into the world in 2011. Finding a work-life balance can be difficult for any parent, but Stronach set out to incorporate motherhood into her career, telling Vice, "We live in a society that often asks professional women to pretend like they're not parents. I think it's so painful and so cruel. I wanted to say: 'I am a mom, and I'm a mom who works and has a brain and can use being a mom to make my work better.'"
Stronach revealed her past as The Childlike Empress to Maya when she was three, enchanting the young girl with toys and photographs. She has also said that should Maya want to pursue a similar career, her parents would support her, though her dad would prefer she went into the fields of medicine or law. Of course, the difference between Maya and her mother is Stronach's experience, which her parents lacked, making show business a more likely possibility.
She dipped her toe back into acting
Most of Tami Stronach's career kept her busy dancing, but she never entirely stopped acting. She primarily worked in theater and incorporated dance into her acting when the need arose. Although she didn't use "The NeverEnding Story" as a springboard to become a feature film actor, she planned on returning to that world if something interested her. It must have come periodically throughout her life because Stronach appeared in a few projects over the years, though none were mainstream successes.
In 2008, Stronach popped up in a Czech TV movie, "Fredy a Zlatovláska" ("Freddy and Goldilocks"), playing Panenka z krámku kuriozit (Doll from the curiosity shop). It's a minor role in a film few watched outside the Czech Republic, but it was also Stronach's first acting outside the theater since she appeared in "The NeverEnding Story" 24 years earlier. She took another decade off from acting on-camera before appearing in another project — this time, a feature film.
Stronach played a fictionalized version of herself in the 2018 independent film, "Ultra Low." The film follows a team of filmmakers working behind the scenes to create their artistic vision, only to find failure at every turn. Things change when Lauren Holly joins their next production. Finally, Stronach joined the cast of "Poslední z Aporveru" ("Last of Aporver"), another Czech fantasy film about a boy and girl who save their world with their love.
She opened her own theater company with her husband
While she dabbled with acting in various projects throughout her life, Tami Stronach remained true to her first love, the theater, and broadened her scope to form her own production company. "I did a couple of other plays and then started to really miss acting," Stronach explained. "I actually ended up approaching some of the people from that company [Flying Machine] who are in the theater company with me. That's who I've collected to reform as Paper Canoe Company."
Initially, the company focused much of its attention on developing "Light: A Dark Comedy," which Stronach created alongside a group of talented friends. Stronach's husband, Greg Steinbruner, co-created the company, and the two run it together as they develop content aimed at children's theater, education, and film. The Paper Shoe Company's goals align with Stronach's connection to motherhood and her somewhat unusual childhood, which she explained to Vice: "I think feminism is constantly evolving, and nobody really has it figured out. But it did feel significant to me to take a stand and say, 'I'm making being a mom an important part of the kinds of stories I make.'"
With that in mind, it seems like each of the Paper Shoe Company's creations have the couple's daughter, Maya, in mind, and she even took part in one of their biggest projects: a feature film harkening back to the 1980s.
She returned to acting with other popular stars from the 1980s
Popular for decades, "The NeverEnding Story" received a fresh round of attention via a segment in the third season of "Stranger Things." The sequence not only paid homage to "The NeverEnding Story" and pop singer Limahl's classic song from the film, but it also inspired Tami Stronach and her husband, Greg Steinbruner, to tap into the nostalgia gripping the world and create their own 1980s-inspired fantasy film.
They came up with "Man & Witch," and in addition to Stronach, the film stars many celebrities who made the 1980s such a memorable decade for the fantasy genre. Stronach and Steinbruner have roles in the film, as do Christopher Lloyd, Sean Astin, Jennifer Saunders, Eddie Izzard, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Rhea Perlman, Michael Emerson, and many more. The couple's daughter, Maya, also has a part in the movie, making it her feature film debut.
"Man & Witch" includes puppets from The Jim Henson Creature Shop, adding to the overall lo-fi '80s theme. The film's production ran into problems due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but should eventually find its way to theaters. Stronach discussed the film with Variety in 2021, saying it fills a need for nostalgia via "a sense of wonder, and magic, and fun. A fantasy world that feels real. That we can lose ourselves in and return to over and over as a family."
She engages with fans at conventions
Tami Stronach spent all of 10 minutes on screen in "The NeverEnding Story," but that doesn't make her any less popular with fans. In fact, Stronach has a huge following all over the world, and many are eager to meet her and discuss the role that made her a star. The actor makes appearances at conventions throughout the year, and while she doesn't go to every event, she hits up some of the biggest.
Over the years, Stronach has appeared at New York Winter Con, Comic Con Liverpool, For the Love of Fantasy at Comic Con Scotland, Eternal Con, and Comic Con Northern Ireland, among many others. If you happen to see Stronach at a con, she's more than happy to talk about her time as The Childlike Empress, take a photo, and autograph some merch. Stronach doesn't limit herself to big conventions and will stop at small ones as well to engage with her fans as she drums up interest in her current projects.
On top of meeting with fans at her booths, Stronach takes part in Q&A panels and talks about all manner of things related to her work. She also takes the time to sit for interviews and really engage with the public as much as possible. Evidently, the question she's asked the most is, "What did Bastian call out at the end of 'The NeverEnding Story?'" It's almost impossible to hear correctly in the film, but he calls out "Moonchild!"
She sells Neverending Story merch on Etsy and teaches yoga
Tami Stronach likes to engage with her fans but doesn't limit herself to conventions. Like many people, she found an outlet to expand her business online — namely an Etsy shop. Like most Etsy stores, Stronach's shop specializes in something specific; for her, it's "The NeverEnding Story." Stronach regularly keeps items in stock related to her iconic feature film role from 1984, including two types of autographed photos and a mug.
The mug reads "The more coffee you drink" on the front with The Childlike Empress below. On the back, a picture of Bastian reading sits below "The more magnificent Fantasia will become," which refers to The Childlike Empress' line, "And the more wishes you make, the more magnificent Fantasia will become." Stronach must be doing well with her shop because she has a five-star rating and more than 700 sales.
When she's not selling stuff on Etsy, Stronach spends much of her time dancing and teaching yoga. Stronach loves yoga and has taught it in New York City for over 20 years. According to her website, her "teaching encourages you to reconnect to your body, mind, and spirit whether today is your first day of yoga or you have practiced for years." In addition to teaching classes locally, Stronach also hosts classes via livestream in what she calls "Never Ending Yoga."