Seann William Scott gives honest answer to why we don't see him in Hollywood anymore

Seann William Scott is best known for starring as the loud, obnoxious and hilarious Steve Stifler in the American Pie franchise.

But in real life, the 49-year-old actor doesn't have that much in common with the comical character that he has become synonymous with.

In fact, Scott's reason for stepping away from the spotlight is something which Stifler would surely never let him live down.

Despite what fans of American Pie might think of the person he played, the Minnesota-born star revealed that he believes there was a lot more to him than most folks think.

In a new interview, Scott explained that he 'never really thought of Stifler as being dumb', saying: "I saw him more as somebody who just wanted to be loved."

He joked that meeting him can be quite the anticlimax for some fans, as he isn't that similar to the character he's most famous for portraying.

The actor is best known for his role in American Pie (Universal Pictures)

"I could tell some people would get a little heartbroken when they met me, because they were expecting this, like, wild party animal, and I’m a pretty boring guy," Scott said.

"It felt like I was letting them find out Santa Claus isn’t real."

While speaking to the Independent, the actor said that he enjoyed the role so much that he would have 'done all of the American Pies for free'.

Stating that he 'really means this', Scott said: "I never cared about money in that way. And I feel the same way now as I did then...like, I can’t believe I actually get to do this for a living."

Still, he does earn a pretty penny for offering his talents to the film world, as court documents which revealed his earnings showed when they were made public last year.

Scott only got paid a measly $8,000 (£6,000) for his first appearance as Stifler in 1999 - which is pretty shocking, considering the mammoth success that American Pie achieved.

After impressing Hollywood heavyweights with his acting prowess in the beloved comedy and its sequels, he went on to bag roles in other cult classics such as Final Destination and Dude, Where's My Car?

Scott looks back on these days fondly and is proud of how all of his hard work paid off, but these days, he's not as interested in chasing cinematic glory.

Scott, 49, shares daughter Frankie Rose with his former wife (Raymond Liu/Disney via Getty Images)

However, he does make time for certain projects he enjoys, such as the slasher film Dolly, which was released earlier this month.

Revealing why he largely swerves the entertainment scene, he said: "I’m happy that I was able to get things going early on in my career, and to now be at the point where I don’t feel like I have anything to prove.

"I just want to make a fun little project every once in a while, then go home to my daughter," he said, while suggesting that comedies in cinemas appear to be 'kind of done', although he reckons there's plenty of 'great' rib-tickling shows on television.

His reasoning for taking on less work is absolutely adorable - but you can imagine his notorious character Stifler probably wouldn't share the same opinion.

Scott shares his daughter Frankie Rose with his former wife Olivia Korenberg. The pair got divorced in 2024 after four years of marriage.

He made his Instagram debut in January last year by sharing a sweet video of his little girl, who was born in June 2020, giving him a makeover.

Scott captioned the cute clip: "A daddy/daughter beauty session feels like the right way to kick things off."

Although he had a great time being the life of the party and a commander of chaos in American Pie, he'd much prefer to be spending quality time with Frankie Rose nowadays.