Whatever Happened To Tara Reid?
As one of the biggest "It Girls" of the early 2000s, Tara Reid became a household name for moviegoers thanks to her charming screen presence and impressive filmography. Reid made a name for herself with standout performances in popular comedies such as the "American Pie" franchise and the Coen Brothers' "The Big Lebowski," to name just a few. In "American Pie," Reid played the crucial role of Vicky Lathum, the reluctant girlfriend of Kevin Myers (Thomas Nicholas), and in "The Big Lebowski" she stole the show as the free-spirited Bunny Lebowski. With all of this overwhelming success in the late '90s and early '00s, many fans were left scratching their heads as to why Tara Reid disappeared from the spotlight over the years.
Although she isn't starring in big blockbuster comedies like "American Pie" anymore, the actress has found a unique niche for herself in various projects ranging from reality television to clothing lines, to the most absurd direct-to-DVD shlock that you can find in the Walmart bargain bin. Amid occasional personal troubles and publicized scandals is a fascinating career trajectory that stands out among the usual ups and downs of movie stars. So, read on to find out exactly what happened to Tara Reid.
She dated Carson Daly
In a sea of manufactured celebrity couples in Hollywood, it is heartwarming to see true love blossom between people of renown. It's also equally as heartbreaking to see that love be torn to shreds by the pressures of stardom. Sadly, that's exactly what happened to the promising power couple that was Tara Reid and Carson Daly.
Daly is a media personality and television host with over three decades of activity in entertainment, but at this point, he is best known for his work as a video jockey on MTV's "Total Request Live" and for his long-running late-night show called "Last Call with Carson Daly." He also managed to have a decent acting career with a small, but notable, role on the popular sitcom "My Name is Earl." Tara Reid met Daly on the set of "Total Request Live" back in 2000, and soon enough the sparks started flying. Their romance was so intense that they moved in with each other and got engaged within a year, with Daly's publicist at the time confirming this in a statement by saying, "Yes, [Carson and Tara] got engaged over the weekend but they haven't set a date yet" (via E! News). Unfortunately, this relationship wasn't built to last and the pair called off their engagement in July 2001, effectively ending their whirlwind tryst.
She endured bad plastic surgery
It's not unusual for Hollywood stars to partake in cosmetic procedures, especially since they rely so heavily on looking consistently good on screen. It shouldn't come as a surprise that Tara Reid has also gone under the knife during her tenure as a mainstream celebrity but what makes her stand out is how open she has been about the process.
During one particularly candid interview with Us Magazine back in 2006, Reid discussed how she had gotten several different procedures done over the years to varying degrees of success. According to Reid, one of her first major surgeries was breast implants to make her chest more even. She told Us, "I got my breasts done for the first time because my breasts were uneven. I was a 34-B, but the right one was always bigger than the left," then added, "I figured, I'm in Hollywood, I'm getting older, I'm going to fix them." Unfortunately, the story doesn't end there since these implants caused serious problems for the "American Pie" actress. Reid admitted that the doctors gave her the wrong size implants and created unappealing bumps on her body. This also isn't the only time plastic surgery went poorly for Reid as she also had liposuction done to remove excess fat from her body. Unfortunately, this led to major physical issues with her stomach which Reid described as, " the most ripply, bulgy thing."
She had her own television show
While Tara Reid is mainly known as a movie star, over time she managed to dip her toes into other forms of entertainment. In the entrepreneurial spirit of other celebrities of the time such as Flavor Flav and Paris Hilton, Reid made the bold decision to get her own reality show centered around her life and travel as Tara Reid in the E! Series "Taradise."
"Taradise" was a short-lived but fondly remembered E! Reality series that featured Reid as the host. The series had a troubled and complex production history since it was originally intended to be another season of the already existing "Wild On!" show that was haphazardly re-edited into being an entirely new piece of content. Sadly, this unique piece of reality television history was canceled after only one season in 2007 due to unspecified production issues. The president of E! at the time, Ted Harbert, acknowledged the problems in making the show saying, "The show was incredibly difficult to produce with someone well-known ... Tara was involved in every minute, and it was an exhausting production" (via The Futon Critic).
She was voted off Celebrity Big Brother 8
"Taradise" wasn't the only time that Tara Reid graced the small screen, as you may already know if you're a fan of the reality show "Celebrity Big Brother." This incredibly popular British reality TV series sees a group of celebrity contestants sealed off from the world and observed by both a camera crew and the world at large. Fans can't get enough of seeing these famous people interact with each other in a seemingly genuine way, and enjoy all the drama that unfolds as a result of the challenges and tasks, and being cut off from all their home comforts.
Reid entered the house for the eighth season in 2011 and joined the cast of other celebrities including Paddy Doherty, Amy Childs, Pamela Bach-Hasselhoff, and Sally Bercow. Unfortunately for Reid, her big-screen charms didn't translate well to British audiences and she was the third contestant to be voted out that year, with the series eventually won by Doherty.
She garnered several worst actress nominations
Listen, we're all Tara Reid fans here. Her performances in the "American Pie" movies, "The Big Lebowski," and the TV show "Scrubs" are all-time classics in the actress' filmography. However, some critics have gone up to bat against some of her less highly acclaimed projects over the years. As a result, Reid has garnered a handful of worst actress nominations from the Razzies.
One of the standout examples of this comes from her appearance in the 2003 comedy film "My Boss' Daughter" where Reid stars alongside Ashton Kutcher and Terence Stamp. In the film, Kutcher plays Tom who is tasked with housesitting for his uptight boss and, as you might expect, chaos ensues. Reid plays the titular boss' daughter, Lisa, who develops an intense romance with Tom over the course of the film. Despite this hilarious-sounding premise, critics were not amused by either the story or the chemistry between Kutcher and Reid. The actress was nominated for both worst supporting actress and worst screen couple with Kutcher at the Golden Raspberry Awards of 2004. On the bright side, she lost this non-honor to Demi Moore in "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" and Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez in "Gigli" respectively.
She starred in Sharknado
Fans of so-bad-they're-good films will be all too familiar with movies made by "The Asylum," a production company infamous for making truly terrible flicks. Their most iconic movie is undoubtedly 2013's "Sharknado," which put them on the map and spawned a whole series of brilliantly-named sequels and spinoffs including "Sharknado II: The Second One," "Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!," "Sharknado: The 4th Awakens," "Sharknado 5: Global Swarming," and "The Last Sharknado: It's About Time."
The proudly schlocky "Sharknado" brought some impressive star power to the cast by snagging Tara Reid in a leading role as April Wexler. The character is the ex-wife of Fin Shepard (Ian Ziering), and she tags along for the shark-infested storm shenanigans along with Fin. Famously, Reid also gave a series of strange and borderline incomprehensible interviews during the press junket for the final "Sharknado" film that got her into some hot water. In one part of an interview with Today Extra, she said: "While it's unfortunate to see some of the recent negative press following a successful week of promoting and supporting the film, I'm happy to know that my fans continue to stand by me — this is for them!"
She has struggled with substance abuse
Sadly, Tara Reid is one of the many Hollywood stars who have struggled with substance abuse issues during their time in the spotlight. Reid gained a reputation in the tabloids for being a party girl thanks to her wild nights out and frequent interactions with paparazzi. It turns out that she was dealing with some serious issues at the time that had gone unaddressed until 2008 when she checked herself into a rehab facility to deal with her addiction to alcohol.
According to a piece by People from the time, Reid checked into the Promises Treatment Center of her own accord in order to tackle her alcoholism head-on. One source mentioned that Reid, "has a problem with alcohol. It's been at the root of much discomfort between herself and her family and friends." This was further elaborated by saying that, "She becomes erratic and is a completely different person when she's intoxicated, which is hard for people close to her to watch." Reid's time in rehab seemed to be relatively effective as she continued her treatment despite rumors of checking out as early as three weeks after entering the facility.
If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
She started a fashion line
While Tara Reid has had her fair share of trials and tribulations, she has also managed to branch out beyond acting and has enjoyed success as an entrepreneur by parlaying her fame into a moderately well-known fashion line. Alongside renowned French designer Christian Audigier, the two created a brand called Mantra back in 2009.
Mantra came out of the gate with guns blazing, offering consumers everything from dresses, t-shirts, hoodies, bikinis, and other assorted pieces of clothing and jewelry. Reid touched on the intention behind her brand by saying, "You're gonna have a story when you wear this bikini or when you put this dress on: You'll either get love or meet a new friend or you might meet a guy." Amazingly, Mantra also had an interesting connection with Reid's appearances in the "Sharknado" franchise by producing a unique fragrance inspired by sharks, called — funnily enough — "Shark." During an interview with Vice, she explained her reasoning behind creating this fragrance saying, "We knew 'Sharknado' was coming, so it was perfect timing because we knew we were going to have to do all of the publicity for that, so it was kind of like a double whammer. It smells citrus-y [with] a little bit of floral, but it's very, very light — it smells like you're on vacation basically."
She guest starred on The Boys
Although Tara Reid has continued acting in both movies and television, she hasn't really been in anything super mainstream for some time. Until recently, that is. Reid managed to have a fun and really cool cameo — playing herself — in one of the biggest streaming series in recent memory for Amazon's "The Boys."
This edgy superhero show has blown audiences away with its biting satire and amazing performances from A-list talent such as Karl Urban, Antony Starr, Jack Quaid, and Erin Moriarty to name just a few. "The Boys" manages to be a fascinating mix of superhero metacommentary mixed into the real world that we all live in, and one of the ways they do this is by having hilarious real-world acting cameos. A prime example of this is how Tara Reid ended up appearing in the series as herself during the Season 1 episode called "The Innocents" where she attends a Comic Con-esque event alongside other actors like Billy Zane and poses for a photo with an adoring fan. There are some great deep-cut references in the scene as well, with a poster for the long-forgotten 2006 horror movie "Incubus" on the table ready to be signed, and Reid's beloved dog Beso also getting in on the action.
She is set to compete in Special Forces: World's Toughest Test
One of the most popular reality shows at the moment is Fox's "Special Forces: World's Toughest Test." This series takes military-style training and applies it to normal people or, in this case, celebrities to see if they have what it takes to join the special forces. So far the show has only completed one season and featured the intense experiences of celebrities like Jamie Lynn Spears, Anthony Scaramucci, Dwight Howard, and the two people who actually passed: Hannah Brown and Carli Lloyd.
Season 2 of the show is now well on its way, and many members of the cast have been announced as competitors in "Special Forces." According to Deadline, 14 celebrities have signed on to test the limits of their minds and bodies in the next season including Tom Sandoval, Blac Chyna, Tyler Cameron, Jack Osbourne, and many more. But most importantly, Tara Reid will be appearing on the show as a full-fledged competitor. She went on TikTok to announce her appearance saying that she was "So excited to join Season 2" of the reality show.
She's made headlines with some bizarre publicity stunts
In the wild and wacky world of Hollywood, it's common for celebrities to do strange things to maintain the attention of the fickle public. Tara Reid was one particularly notable famous person who participated in weirdly bizarre publicity stunts over the years as a means to continue being talked about, even if that sometimes meant in a negative light.
For Reid, her scandal of choice seemed to always involve marriages. Sometimes they were real engagements that got called off — such as her whirlwind fling with Carson Daly — and other times she just told the press she was getting married despite them being complete fabrications. One such example was in 2010 when Reid began dating the Danish businessman Michael Lillelund and claimed that they had gotten married in 2011. This ended up not being true since Lillelund completely denied having married Reid at all (via Today). Another example of this was when Reid and fellow actor Dean May joined the 2016 season of "Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars" despite the fact that they weren't actually married. This led to them being kicked off the show after they admitted the marriage was fake, and that they had done it to get some money and boost their fame (via In Touch).