Shannon Elizabeth Meets World

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed human. Bask in the calm and charm of Bista Village. Join us for the summer event and refresh your wardrobe with an extra 30% off the village price. From the 22nd to the 31st of May, select lines and brands, T's and C's apply, see Bista Village.com. Bista Village. The thrill of discovery. Bista Village. So Ryder and I found out something really cool that we are going to the live survivor finale. That is so cool. Because season 50. Freaking cool. Isn't that the neatest thing? Like we're going to get to be there. I know. I'm so excited. Yeah, really psyched, but it led me to a question. So this is survivor as we talk about it. I know you follow every episode, Danielle. You apply meets twirl. I never miss one. I never miss a survivor one. I get the edits. I know. So I know you're very excited. But this is the big season of Survivor. It's the season 50 and they pulled out all the stops and it's like there's big, big, big moment in television we're going to be there for. So it led me to, and again, Danielle, you'll be hot and cold on this because we know how you feel about things that are artsy and stuff. That's fun. But if you could put yourself on any set in any time, film or TV history, where would you want to be to watch whatever you'd want to be there to witness live? That's really cool. God, that's a good question. But television history only, not just like live theater. No, no, no, live theater, live TV, live, whatever. And so do you want me to give you a start? I want me to do it so you guys can think for a second. Yeah. We've had a similar question before. We've talked about time traveling. Yeah, it was just time traveling. Yeah, I said go back and watch an original Shakespeare. Make it from the TV and film era on. So like for me, it would be cool to be on the set of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back when they're filming the No Luke, I'm Your Father scene. Wow. It's like, whoa, like I can't believe I'm here for this. That's a pretty good one. That's a pretty good one. So like where would you y'all want to be to watch something like that? Wow. I mean, I don't have like a moment that happened in a movie like that for you, Will. That's like, ooh, that moment, that would be great. I can see why someone would pick something like that. But like for me, I'd probably want to go back to, I mean, my first instinct was to say I love Lucy. Cool. I would want to watch Lucille Ball and Vivienne Vance and see what their dynamic is and see mostly what it was like to be a woman who had power on a set at that time and to just see what that process was like. Yeah, that's a good one. What was, what happened when somebody had something down that they didn't want to do or they didn't like or someone gave them a note like what were those dynamics? I would just kind of want to go back to that time or like the Mary Tyler Moore show. I keep thinking of times where it was like, wow, women as the stars and forefront of their own shows. Right. So I would want to. That's a good one. That's a good one. And I've always thought Lucille Ball was amazing. You know she's responsible for Star Trek. Really? But Desilu, their production company was the only production company willing to do Star Trek. They put Star Trek on the air. So Lucille Ball is responsible for Star Trek. Not amazing. She did so much in Hollywood. So much in Hollywood. Incredible. I have no idea. I mean, I guess it would just be a movie. It'd be like a big movie that I would love to be around. Probably a Spielberg film. I was going to say, what about like, do you want to go to the set and stand by me? Yeah, I mean that would, but I don't know if it would be as like, I would, I don't know. I feel like I would want to solve a mystery. Like I would want to be around for like something that's debated. I'm trying to think what's been debated in film history. Like who came up with what line or, you know, and I can't think of like one great thing. But yeah, I guess if it's just about like experiencing something, it'd be really fun to, I mean, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, like, you know, forget how boring making a movie actually. Oh my gosh, I know. So it's like, part of me is like, I would love to go to the set of Jaws and be on the boat with them and like, do I want to be in a boat for 11 hours as they're trying to get one shot? Like, to try and get like, the fin. The real answer is you couldn't pay me enough money to go visit a movie set. You know what, that's actually, that's a really good point. I think probably it would be a tape night then. A tape night is more fun. Like, the last episode of the Clinefeld could have been really cool. Something like that, or like, the first episode of Cheers, you know, with a live studio audience, first episode of Cheers. I bet you they were having so much fun. Or something where you know that they were improving a bunch, like a movie where they did like, you know, Bridesmaids, where they were doing like, you know, take after take and just making each other laugh. Like, my Instagram feed is all like, become all bloopers. Me too. Me too. So many bloopers. It's like, just behind the scene. And I laugh every time. Because it's not only the joke. It's that they make each other laugh. It's like, mostly what I'm watching. Yeah. I got one for you, Daniel. I got one for you that I think you would like any episode, but either the first or last episode of the David Letterman show. Oh, yeah. Like go watch the original old school Letterman, like him do his thing back in the day. That would have been great. That definitely would be a taping I would want to go to. And you know what, that's funny you say that. Because while we were talking about going to a taping, I thought the thing that's frustrating for me about attending live tapings, if I'm just in the audience, there is such a feeling of FOMO. To be as an actor. As an actor. And now as a director to see everyone and what they're doing in between. And I'd be like, I don't want to be sitting in this audience. I want to be on that crew. I want to be a part of that team. But at a talk show that I've never like that I've never hosted. I don't have that same feeling. So that would be a perfect taping because then I just get to really watch and take it all in. I would definitely want to see. If you if we're going, we're throwing all science and logic out the window. The three of us being able to go back as other people and sit in the audience for make it your first episode, Danielle. So episode four. Oh my God. Would have been really incredible to watch it from that vantage point. See how nervous because we're all still in the nervous stage. And oh my God, I'm still freaking out. Well, you're running out. And I mean, if you could go and actually spend the whole night backstage, like imagine like if you had like a little drone camera that could go around and just follow like reliving a night of Boy Meets World would be insane. And like following crew members backstage and hearing the conversations and what people were. That would be in. I mean, that's basically what this podcast is attempting to do, right? Trying to bring us back to those memories. I did think it was really interesting too that I, you know, I've been interviewing all the American Idol finalists for the American Idol official podcast. And every, every time I get to talk to them, I ask them about the friendships that they've made because they all inevitably have paired up at least paired up, if not, you know, in groups of three or four and they have their best friends and they talk about what a support they've been. And so I always ask them about those friendships and then like of their performances or things on the show, what's been the standout moment for them. And almost all of them have said, oh, um, huh, you know, I don't know because all my favorite moments are, are not those. They're all the moments. And I'm like, it never changes. You know, you don't know who I even who I am, but I also have this experience of doing something insane and incredible and being a part of something that when other people watch it or like imagine doing that. And yet for us, the best moments are standing around at craft service or in the school room. You don't even remember necessarily the big flashy moments of it. So true. It never changes. It's like, it's also such a good reminder that like life and memories are happening in the very small moments. They're not, they're not just the big moments, you know, you don't need to, you don't need to wait for a vacation or wait for a day to make a memory. They're happening, they're happening literally all the time and you don't just control them. Yeah. So yeah, no, it's so true. I think if my, we're going to start a new trend and it's going to be quote unquote sponsored by. So my first year of Boy Meets World, my memories would be sponsored by Otterpops, Wolfenstein and Grapefruit. Wolfenstein? Grapefruit growing. Were we playing Wolfenstein a whole bunch? A whole bunch. So that would be my season one is sponsored by those three things from my memory. Season two would have been Magic the Gathering, right? Yeah. By season three we're into Marlboro Lights, an Amsterdam territory. Exactly. Brought to you by Skywalker OG. Yeah, right. It's a really good ending to go Magic the Gathering. Welcome to Boy Meets World, I'm Daniel Fischel. I'm Ryder Strong. And I'm Wilford L. A brand new quiz with a great big twist. Oh my God. It's not about how smart you are. I went to Oxford University. It's about how smart your rivals think you are. I'm excited about the competition. Can somebody who talks like that not be smart? They'll be lying. I think she'll buy it. I absolutely believe you. Skeaming. I will literally try and manipulate everybody. And a whole lot of quizzing. Am I stupid? Let the bluffing begin. Nobody's fault. Start Saturday the 23rd of May on ITV One and ITV X. The landscape of Hollywood is constantly changing. What just a few years ago was a flourishing industry with hundreds of TV pilots filming and an ability to make a movie based on something other than established IP has become a deserted wasteland focused on corporate mergers, exaggerated cost cutting and a creative forecast that holds little to no hope for the future. Have a great day everyone. Thanks. Wow. Jesus. Holy. But if there's any silver lining to the dystopian reality for entertainment. Podcasted. No. Wait, wait. It's that some of us have had to pivot. Whether it's social media, podcasting, live streaming or an altogether unrelated side hustle, a lot of us have had to look above and beyond the traditional avenues of our industry to diversify. And this week's guest has been the face for this development over the past few weeks. And it seems to have really paid off. Raised in Waco, Texas, she spent most of her childhood focused on tennis with aspirations to go pro, but started modeling, working with premier agencies, Ford and elite models, which led to a breakout in film, playing of all things, a foreign exchange student. Nadia, the confident and beautiful Eastern European love interest of Jim Levinstein in the 1999 smash R rated comedy, American Pie, thrust her into fame and onto covers of magazines with names like Maxim, FHM and Loaded. While becoming one of the internet's first downloadable crushes, she'd go on to appear in all of the American Pie sequels, as well as scary movie, that 70 show, and J.N. Silent Bob Strike Back. Also, she somehow became a professional poker player, going as far as the main event in 2005's World Series of Poker, cementing herself as one of the leading celebrity players of all time. And she's kind too. She's dedicated endless hours of her time to help with animal charities like her own Shannon Elizabeth Foundation, and she helps raise awareness about rhino poaching and saving turkeys during Thanksgiving. But now she's another prime example of a celebrity who's found a new revenue stream in this ever-evolving business, and we're definitely going to talk to her about that too. Please welcome to Podmeets World, our Queen of Hearts, Shannon Elizabeth. Hello! Hi! How are you? We're good. Good, how are you? Good. I have to see you for a second, come with my glasses. Just to get the lay of the land. I love that. Your glasses are so cute. Why would you take them off? Can you see the reflections and everything? So cute. I mean, I just, yeah. So now we're just back to blurs. Now we're blurry. Now we're just blurry. You know, we're lightly blurred. We probably look better that way. I'm convinced that as we get older, we lose our eyesight, so our partner continues to look good to us. Yes. Oh, nice. I like that. It's just a nice little bluffing, you know? Just a little bluffing. I love it. I want to see how well my podcast partners know me. What's the first question I'm going to ask? Where is she? Thank you. Where are you where it's almost dark? South Africa. Oh, geez. Wow. Did you not know I was coming to you from South Africa today? No, that's awesome. I did not know that. That is incredible. Yeah, I had to race home from an appointment in town because I live about an hour away from like the main city and its rush hour. So it's 620 here right now. Wow. I didn't know you lived there full time now. Pretty much. Yeah. I mean, I go back and forth a lot. I'm still in the US three or four times a year, but I'm mainly here. Yeah. That's a quick trip. So that's an easy quick trip. So that's nothing. Super simple. I mean, you know, I don't mind it. I don't mind it. My most peaceful moments are on the airplane. Yeah, right. I understand that for sure. Yeah. Well, thank you so much for hanging out with us today. Much like Taylor Swift, you have had many eras in your career and we are excited to jump into all of them. Well, I can't wait. I love that you compared me and Taylor Swift. Yes. What we do here. I wanted to start a bit with your Waco, Texas origin story. I know you were an avid tennis player. You were like a super jock for sure. So how and when do you go from jock to modeling? Okay. So I kind of fell into playing tennis in school. A friend of mine had said, come try out for the tennis team with me. And she had been like practicing and like growing up with it and doing this her whole life. And I never picked up a racket. I didn't know what I was doing. And this was, I think my freshman year of high school. And so I went and tried out and beat her and got in and I don't think she got a spot and I went straight to varsity. Oh my gosh. Having never picked up a racket, you went from a freshman on varsity? Wow. That's like discovering you have a superpower. Exactly. Exactly. Oh, I mean, I can slide. Yeah. Who knows. I had relatives like cousins that apparently played. And so maybe it's just one of those things that was in my genes. Right. I don't know. I don't know. So I was my whole high school career. I was between, it was me and another girl back and forth for first and second on varsity. And I loved playing and it was amazing. And it was my senior year. My dad knew that I wanted to act. And he was reading the paper one morning and he said, oh, they're casting for a music video downtown. And they're, they're looking for extras if you want to go audition. I'm like, yeah, of course I do. So I went down and auditioned and I got what they called a featured extra, but it's anything but featured. It was like a flash, you know? Yeah. But it was my first chance to be on a real set. And so the whole time I was just hanging out with everyone, like understanding why a shot was a certain way. And I was following the director and I was following the producer and watching every, everything I wasn't in. Well, it turns out that the director was Antoine Foucault. Oh my gosh. This was before he had done training day or anything. And so this was like in the beginning of his career. And the producer was with propaganda films out of New York. And he and I just like got to talking and we were chatting about things and he is like, you should model. And I'm like, I don't really want to model, but I want to act. And at the time actors did commercials and models did commercials. So I thought, well, maybe it's a way that I could get in there and maybe get my side card. And he said, why don't I come to your house and talk to your parents? And my parents were super skeptical and like, why is this guy coming over? What does he want? What's going to happen? And I brought him to the house and he just talked to him and said, look, if you want to come out to New York during your senior year, senior break, Christmas break, come out to New York, I'll set you up with some photographers and some agencies and just see what happens. So I took him back to his hotel, I came back home and my parents were really impressed because he wasn't asking for money. He was just offering to help. And they said, if you want to do this, then we'll support you and we'll go out there and we'll see what happens. So we went out to New York around Christmas. I did some photos and I got signed with an agency. So nine days after I graduated, instead of going the route of like college and sports, I decided to take the leap and do that and see where it led. And my parents just made it really clear. Like if when the money you can use your college money for this, but when it runs out, it runs out and you have to come home. Right. And I don't even remember like how I got money from them or asking for money or what I don't, I don't even know if it ran out. Like I don't know. I forgot to ask about it later. It just kind of all happened. Yeah. But when I was given the opportunity to either go to Europe and build my book or go to Asia and do catalog work and build up my money, I chose that because I knew that I wasn't going to go back home. Right. No matter what, I'm not moving back in with no money. Yeah. Yeah. It was just not an option. And I was more of a catalog girl anyway. So that worked out perfect for me to just go try and build up my money. And eventually it did lead me to I, if you want me to just jump ahead, I'll tell you the story. Like, yeah, how did you go from Asia to getting an agent and starting to act? So I traveled modeling for many years. So I probably, I think I graduated at 17 and I modeled probably till I was 20. So I was on and off in Japan for a year. I was in Taiwan. I did Australia. I just traveled around and eventually I came back and did Texas. I did Dallas. So I told, I had made some friends in New York and they lived in LA. So I told my agency in Dallas. I was going to drive to LA and then I was going to drive cross country, hitting all the major modeling markets and building up my money because I didn't think I could start working in LA. It just seemed like way too big. And, you know, the perception of LA when you come from a small town in Waco, you're like, no, you're going to die if you get LA right now. You're going to swallow you up. Yeah. Yeah. And I said, look, if you're going to LA, they have all the best photographers, go see some agencies will set you up. And so I went and I ended up signing with Ford and they got me with some photographers. And while I was doing photos, they sent me on a few auditions and some were commercials and I got a commercial audition or I booked a commercial. And so then I postponed my trip of leaving and then suddenly I booked a second commercial and that got me my SAB card. So they had to taft partly me. And so it was it was exactly what I thought it was going to be like, I guess I just manifested that that was my crossover to getting my SAB card was the modeling. The modeling. Yeah. So I wanted to I wanted to get my feet on the ground for like a solid year in LA and not do anything else, but just focus on that. And then after a year, I started taking acting classes. And I sent out my headshot. I got with an agency and they would send me on auditions and I took every acting class I could find like I just did everyone around town and took a little bit from each one that that worked for me and eventually I got, well, before even American Pie came along, I did a show called Arliss HBO. Sure. Yeah. Yeah. So what nobody really knows because I think the show is lost in the ethos. It was before the internet, but I played a Russian tennis player. Oh, I had a soul mate. They it was one of those things like I booked my best jobs when they have no other options. And it was one of those things where they're like, they need somebody that can start tomorrow and they need somebody who can wear a bathing suit who can play tennis, who can do a Russian accent. Act, you know, and I'm like, okay. So somehow I got really brave with this one and decided I was going to go in speaking with the accent as if it was my real accent. So they didn't know that I was smart. Actually. Yeah. So, you know, I was like, oh, you know, my parents, they, they speak like this at home. I've been here a long time, but you know, I still speak like this. And so they never questioned the accent. They just said, oh, well, actually she's got the accent. Okay. Great. And then I talked about tennis because I was, I was going for my state ranking. So they're like, oh, great. She could play tennis and she can wear a bathing suit. And I just booked the job and it was probably halfway through wardrobe. I'm like, I'm really tired of speaking like this. Can I just use my normal accent now? I was so afraid of like getting fired. But it was, it was amazing because there was a lot of, like, like Arliss was known for having cameos, but tons and tons of cameos of, you know, famous musicians and actors and everything. And I mean, I think the one that use, oh, John McEnroe. Yeah. John McEnroe was in it. So I had to play with him. Well, that's fun. Weasel Zappa, I think was my eventual boyfriend in it, I think. After, Robert Wool was the first boyfriend, I think. John Sally was in it. I don't know. It was, for me, it was like one of my first big jobs. It was amazing. And so then I just used that as my acting reel because I didn't have enough other stuff. So whenever I needed to show somebody a reel, I was like, well, here's the episode. Just here's the whole episode. Were you living at the Oak Woods during this time? Like, where are you living? Because originally you thought you were just going to come to LA for a little bit. You've postponed your trip. Where do you start living? I started in Marina Del Rey. And, and I honestly, I think I did that because I was from Texas and I was a huge country music fan. And there was a song called Marina Del Rey. Because anybody would tell you if you're moving to LA for auditions, don't move to Marina Del Rey. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, well, I didn't know that at the time. I was there for like a good year before doing the audition thing. But, you know, I remember the, because the highway system is a big circle all around. I was constantly in my car with a pager. And I would have to get off the highway when they would go off to get my auditions for the next day, find a pay phone, you know, had the Thomas guide over there. Oh, yeah. So funny. The whole thing. So when do you get the audition for American Pie and what do you remember about it? I was in an acting class. His name, the coach was named Doug Warhit. And we had done a scene in class that was Pulp Fiction. And I had tried to play the French girl in Pulp Fiction. And so Joe Reitman, who's my now manager and ex, was in class with me. And he was, he coaches and he was helping me and I had this audition come up and he goes, remember in class when you tried to do the French accent? And I'm like, yeah, he goes, it sounded Russian. Do that. And so he didn't, you know, he hadn't seen, he wasn't around yet when I did the other job. But this was a much bigger audition. So I was like really nervous about it. And it's just one of those, you know, I think everybody has an accent that they just go to when they think of a foreign accent. And it's just the one that rolls off their tongue. And it just happens that that's the one that I do better than anything else. Yeah. I don't know why. I mean, that in Southern, you know, like that was kind of it. So it just, I just got lucky and right place, right time. And I mean, the, the casting director was like, okay, I'm going to call you back, but work on the accent. He didn't really love it. Yeah. But, but eventually we got by. Okay. So you're from Texas. You're now playing a sexy foreign exchange student and you've got this big webcam scene. Now, the reason it's called American Pie is crazy. Do you have any expectations after filming it? Did you think like this is my big break? No, I, in fact, I told, I told all my friends, oh, it's not going to be great. I'm so bummed. I don't think it's going to be like anything I thought it was, you know, like, they want to change the accent and this and that. I was convinced it was going to not be good and not do anything like for me at all. Yeah. So I mean, I've, this is why I'm not a studio exact. Cause I had no idea. So yeah, I thought total opposite. And thank goodness I was wrong. Had you ever done a nude scene before this and were you incredibly nervous? I had done like photos. Like I had done some, but I mean the photos I did were actually with a friend of mine and it was just for my book or me on the beach and covering myself and, and we did somewhere I wasn't. And then he went and sold them and I had to eventually sue him and get, and I was underage when we did the photos. So he sold them to a French magazine, but we won the suit and he had, I think the magazine had to pay, but. Oh my gosh. Who needs enemies when you've got things like that? Oh my God. I think because I had done so much modeling and in modeling, you have to get so comfortable changing in the middle of the beach or changing wherever, or changing the car. You just have to do it quickly and keep going. And I think, and I had done a lot of underwear modeling and I think all of that kind of just helped to prepare me that at the time I was just like, all right, well, it's a job. And it was my first big job, big studio film. And it is what it is. Like I just felt like, well, I mean, this is what actors do, right? Like it's part of your craft. So I just had to look at it that way. I didn't feel like I was in a position to be saying no to jobs. Right. Right. What do you remember about your interactions with Jason Biggs on that day? We were super nervous. We were both everybody was nervous. It was a closed set. And Joe, my boyfriend at the time actually came with me and he knew that he was nervous. So he like played into it. He was sitting behind the monitors watching. And I don't remember like just like after we did like one take, he yelled something out to him as if he was angry. Right. He was joking just for to ignore him. He's joking. But he was trying to like just lighten the mood. Lighten the mood. But I mean, we were all nervous and because it was closed, it was me, Jason and a sound guy right above me. Right. Like watching everything right there. Yeah. But it was, it was totally fine. And we got through it. And yeah, it was, it was good. I noticed during researching your career that you didn't do any nude scenes after American Pie. And you have said that posing for Playboy around that time was one of your biggest regrets. So I wonder if you talked a little bit about that evolution for you. Do you not remember that? Or did you say that? No, I don't remember saying that, but there's a lot of things quoted that I said. Yeah, that's just not. Right. Of course. I regret that we, we actually did that because it went along with the character. It actually was like, well, this is what the character would do. This is like, it works with the character. So that's why it was a decision that we made at the time. I don't regret it. And what's, what's funny is there actually was a scene in another film that I did and I was topless. So it wasn't actually my first time doing it. Okay. So it was, it was the second time I did it. Because I had already done this other film. I'm not going to name it because everyone's going to go look for it, but. But it was with some really big actors. Like I was really also really excited to get that role. It wasn't a studio film, but it was with a lot of named actors that I looked up to. So yeah, it is what it is. I mean, I, I, I didn't do it again because I didn't feel like at that point I needed to do it again. And it never warranted itself. You know, there was no reason to do another type of role that was similar to her. But if something had come along, like, you know, you remember NYPD blue and like there was quite a lot of nudity and that for a TV show. And it was, it was like, if it was something like that at the time, where it's like, okay, it's a different genre. It's a different type of thing. And, and it's not like exploiting what you've already done. Yeah. Okay. So wait, so you, you won't say the name of the movie, which I totally respect. What was the video? What was the Antoine Fuqua video that you're in? Oh, so the band was called high five. Okay. And it's actually online. It's on YouTube, I think high five. And just can't handle it is the name of the video. But if you watch it, yeah, if you watch it, I can tell you I'm in my actual cheerleading uniform from high school, which I still have. Because they shot it at a school. So I'm standing on the top of the steps at the school. And we're all like, oh, look at the guys, you know, like the guys that are dancing. They were like, oh, look, look, and that was it. Like you see it for us split second. It's so funny. That was it. But I mean, as much as that was it, I still look at that for me as such a pivotal moment. It really changed everything for me. Yeah. If that hadn't happened, I don't know what where my career would have gone. Well, when you look back at the time of American Pie, those red carpet events or MTV movie awards, I want to hear what you think was the best. 2000s clothing trend. And what you think was the worst? Was it the colored sunglasses, bedazzled bandanas, trucker hats, juicy pants? Like what do you think is the best and the worst? Back then in general. Uh huh. Yeah. From that like Y2K wardrobe thing we all participated in. I don't know if I remember enough about it to be honest. I was never great with fashion. I always had to have a wardrobe stylist helping me. And I mean, I know you're naming the MTV movie awards because I had quite a weird fashion thing then. And honestly, we had no idea when I left the house that it was as see through as it was when the lights hit it because at home it wasn't see through. And then the lights hit it and it was like, oh, wow, didn't plan on that. Yeah. But here we are. I also have some of that just like a black a black shirt I was wearing that I did wasn't wearing a bra with had absolutely no idea that when hit with a bunch of flashes was going to become completely see through. Oh my God. And all of those photos are. Yeah, they won't be there forever. It is what it is. Yeah, what do you do? Nothing we can do. Yeah. Yeah. So you have then appeared in all the American Pie movies and we have had Mina Suvarri and Jason Biggs on the podcast. And every time I have asked about the American funeral sequel that is both a possibility or a total Facebook clickbait post we are we do not know either way. Would you be interested in going back to playing Nadia almost 30 years later? I would absolutely go back. In fact, I think they need to do a film all about Nadia back in her own country. And following her back there and learning about her life there. And yeah, I've got some ideas for it. I love that. That's a great idea. I started writing that. You should have. It's actually really funny. I mean, now with AI I could probably write it by the end of the night. I have ideas and there you go. I think it's like a funny sexier borat, which would be like super funny to do. You know, that could be great. Like depending on what town you're from, everything. Yeah, that could be very funny. Well, you know, I started out as one of the students, but now I can be one of the adults. Right. Yes. Join us this spring at Aberboy. The groundbreaking concert like no other. Sing and dance along to some of the band's most popular hits. Only at London's Aber arena. New dates on sale. Book now at Aberboy.com. All right, it's time to enter your gambling era. I want to talk poker. Okay. When did you start playing? So I don't know if you remember Bravo did celebrity poker showdown. Yeah. And that was 2006, maybe something like that. I don't remember exactly, but I had, because of American pie, I started my charity back in 2001, which meant everything to me. And so when they started doing a celebrity poker showdown, it was to raise or to get money for a charity of your choice. And that's all I needed to hear. Like at that point, anything that gets money for my charity, I'll do it. I had never played Texas hold them once. Wow. Being from Texas. I played cards with my grandmother quite a bit when I was young, but I didn't know this card game. And they literally taught me how to play backstage before we shot the show. Oh my gosh. I was probably, I think I was first out and no idea what I was doing. How many magical superpowers do you have where you're just like, and it was the first time I drove a car and then I won the Indy 500. No, no, no, no. It was just a strange thing. First out. I was first out. I came a thing right. I mean, it's like you finding all these skills all of a sudden. It's so crazy. Well, I mean, for that, it was 5000 to my charity just for appearing on the show. That was like fine. So then there was another opportunity to do something similar and it just started happening where, okay, all these, that's how they got celebs to like play on things as give money to charity. At the same time, a lot of the poker pros were fascinated with pop culture. And so a bunch of the poker pros started teaching a bunch of the actors. So I remember one of the, one of the actors calling me and saying, I'm bringing people to your house. I'm bringing a poker pro and a bunch of people and they're going to teach us. Like, okay. So then these two guys show up with, and like, I think Jennifer Tully was there and Nick Gonzalez, there were a bunch of people there. And there were these two guys that they brought and I'm sitting there the whole time going, which one's the pro? Which one's the pro? Like, I don't know who these guys are. And the only thing I knew about poker at this point were their nicknames. Like I didn't know the real name. Right. So you remember there was the Unabomber, there was the magician, there was a, wait, there's an actual poker player called the Unabomber. Yeah. He wore a hoodie and glasses. And yeah. And so that was his nickname. So one of the guys was very analytical and mathematical and this is how you do it mathematically. And the other one's like, don't listen to him. That's not how you do it. You do it like this, gut instinct, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Turns out they're both the pros and one was the Unabomber and one was the magician. No idea. Yeah. So I, eventually I just, there was a moment where I'm like, Oh, it's not about the cards. It's a psychological game and which I love. Like that's my thing. I love once I realized it really wasn't about the cards. I had fun with it. Cause when I was used to like five card draw or seven card stud or something where you might draw cards or discard it. I was like, you just get your cards and that's it. That's so stupid. It's so boring. Like I didn't get it. You know? Yeah. But then once I got it, I'm like, Oh, I really like this game. Okay. Yeah. Let's play this one. But going from poker is fun to I could compete in the world series. That's what I mean. Poker is a big step. It's crazy. How did you know I was getting sponsored? It wasn't my money. So it was okay. Okay. I, this was back when a lot of the big online, online poker sites were doing deals with a lot of people to wear their logos. So whether it was poker pros or actors or whatever is like, where are logo and these televised events? And it helps to advertise them. Yeah. So I mean, I was getting, I was getting contracts from people to wear their logo. So for me, it was a way to not bug my agents if I wasn't getting an audition or I wasn't getting a job or I wasn't working. It gave me another like avenue to focus on. And in the beginning, it was all about making money for my charity. And then suddenly I had this deal that was supporting myself by just like wearing the logo at these events. I'm like, Oh, wait, you're saying I have to go to Australia to play for free? Sure. Okay. Yeah. Let's find me up. Right. So I mean, that's why I got to play. It wasn't my money. I was actually required to play and I loved it. It just was so much fun. So being an actor from American Pie was an advantage or a disadvantage? An absolutely an advantage. Okay. I mean, because when you, when you wear, let's say you've got a sea of a thousand people and they have like one camera going around covering people, they're going to go cover the people that they know. Yeah. So because I was there, I was a girl. I was an actor. They recognized me from a movie. So I was getting the airtime, which is what gave me the deals. That's why they were offering me the deals because they knew I would, the cameras would go to me. Right. So that's the only reason if I was just some girl playing poker, they wouldn't have given me a deal. I wasn't good enough. So you said you're sponsored to be there. You're sponsored. You're making the money from the logos and all the sponsorship stuff, but you're playing with somebody else's money. So if you win, do you not keep the money then that you would win in the poker tournament because it wasn't your money to play with? How does that work? Everyone had a different deal. Some people had deals where there was a split. I had a deal that if I win the money, I keep the money because they knew the chances were I wasn't going to win the money. I like that. They knew that chances were really slim. Wow. So. Well, that's the best way. You gambling with somebody else's money, but you keep all the winnings. That's the best way to play. Pretty awesome. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Amazing. I mean, it was just, yeah, I just got really lucky and yeah, it was just a great period of time. It was like a, you know, I think the acting community becomes kind of like a family and it became like the poker community felt like a second family to me. So it was, it was amazing. Cool. Well, you've mentioned it a couple of times, the Shannon Elizabeth Foundation. Have you always been connected to animals? Always. When I was a little girl, I remember riding in the car with my dad and it was Texas. So we had a lot of armadillos and there would be like a dead armadillo in the road and I would scream and cry and he would slam on the brakes. What? What? I'm like, there's dead animals. And he's like, but I thought I was going to hit someone. I'm like, that'd be better than hitting the animal. I just like was always connected to animals and we had a dog when I was young that my parents got before I was born and when she was no longer with us, they didn't want to get another animal because they knew I would be out of the house before the animal would be. And I was like, when I grew up, I had tons of animals, tons. I'm going to have a farm of animals. So I know like what a sanctuary was. I didn't know like about Africa at that point. I just knew I wanted to be surrounded by animals. So that was always in the cards for me. So is that what led you to Cape Town, South Africa, which is where you spend most of your time now? Yeah. Yeah, it's a hundred percent. So in 2014, I ended up moving from Hollywood to New York and when I was out there, there was an ivory and rhino horn crush in Times Square. And so I got invited to go to that and there were a lot of conservationists there from all over the world, but a lot from Africa. And that was my introduction to meeting a bunch of people in this space. So I started putting a trip together to come out to South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Kenya just to learn, meet people and understand the issues and try to figure out like what I could do. And what I missed in that story is that I started following, when I was in New York, I started following a lot of these conservation organizations. And there was a video on Instagram that flipped a switch in me. I was getting ready to go out one night and something in my head said, check Instagram. And I didn't even know what I was checking for because I wasn't a big social media person. But I started checking and I came across this video of this ranger scanning what he saw in front of him. And you could see a trunk of an elephant off to one side. And then you saw the rest of the elephant and you hear him say, this poor baby's been out here all night suffering. And then she moves. And it was the first time I realized the torture that they were going through and that they were still alive, feeling everything. I guess I just assumed that you would kill the animal and then you would take the horn or take the ivory. But they were immobilizing the animal and taking it while they were still alive. And they do that all the time. And that it flipped a switch in me and I said, this is what I want to do with the charity. We started as a dog and cat rescue in LA and I knew I wanted to help more animals on a bigger scale. I didn't know what that looked like. And once I saw that, I knew that that's what I wanted to do. That the idea that these animals could go extinct in our lifetime just didn't compute. And I didn't feel like I could sit by and do nothing after knowing that. So eventually I decided I was moving out here to be closer to the issues and be able to meet more people in this space and really figure out like, what could I do to help? I'm still questioning that all the time. Am I doing anything that's helping? What can I do? What more can I do? And it's always evolving. It's always changing. But I mean, that's the goal is I feel like it's my mission. Like whereas acting was my job, but my mission for being here on the planet was to help the animals. Is it getting better? Is it getting better now for the elephants and the rhinos? And I mean, is it better than it was? Are you seeing a trend where everybody eyes on it now and social media and there's cameras all over the place that maybe it is trending in the right direction or no? It's a tough thing to say because you don't. My answer could lead the poachers to information. Right. OK. What happens is a lot of people keep things very quiet. So people in the community here will know things that are not public knowledge because the poachers know to watch, to listen, to look for things. They get information online the same way we do. Sure. So everything people have to hide their animals. So I will say, yes, I feel like it is trending in the right direction. There's always going to be it's the syndicate. So I mean, you probably remember a while back, there was a lot of talk of Boko Haram and some of the Al-Shabaab and these syndicates that they kidnapped a bunch of schoolgirls, which is where I think we first heard about one of them. So what what they do is they look for ways to fund terrorism and wildlife trafficking and a part is the easiest way for them to get money to buy guns. So if they go out or they pay like tiny amounts to a local villager and they'll supply him with a panga, which is a big knife and and a gun and what. And they say, bring us back a rhino horn and you bring us back a rhino horn. We'll give you a thousand dollars. Now, that rhino horn on the black market is worth half a million dollars. And they're giving the local villager like a thousand dollars. And that local villager for them, that's more than they're going to make. Yeah, that's life changing. You know, that's life changing for them. So as much as people don't want to do it, when you're faced with that and you have a family to feed and you don't know what else to do. And quite often these syndicates, they know how to blackmail people. They set them up to blackmail them. And so even with a lot of people in high positions, whether that's here or anywhere, governments, you know, anybody who works in high positions, it's easy to fall into something where they look for a weakness. Now, this I mean, you see this on probably CSI, they look for a weakness where it's like, oh, oh, you need money for your child's surgery. Let us take care of that. Let me let me fix that for you. You're going to take it. Now you belong to them. Now, now you have to keep doing what they say. And this is the problem. And this is the cycle. And they're very well funded. They're very clever. And it's very hard to get out of that. And especially when they're like, oh, you don't want to do that. We'll kill you and your kids. We'll kill your wife and your kids first. And you're going to watch like it's just it's really brutal. So it's it's a true war. What's happening? And I think anybody in conservation just accepts that it is a war. And it's very dangerous and you might get killed. So I mean, I we we have bulletproof vests on our sanctuary. Like I have a bulletproof vest. If because if if it does get infiltrated when I'm there, there's nothing you can do when you've got your anti poaching. But really, and I'm not allowed to have a licensed gun here because I'm not from here. So all I can have is say, like a like a BB gun kind of thing that can do nylon bullets or pepper spray bullets or stuff. But I mean, that's that's the most I'm allowed to have here. So you just kind of accept and you you you ask the universe to protect you, basically, like if I'm meant to be doing this work, protect me, protect the sanctuary, protect everything we're doing so that we can keep helping and, you know, working with local communities and trying to uplift the local communities so that they also become your protectors, you know. The more you can work with a community around you, the better. And then they don't want to come in and hurt the animals. They they want to protect you because you're helping them have a livelihood of their own and they don't need the money from the poachers. That's the real answer. But there's just so many parts and so many communities. It becomes like everybody can do their little part. There is no magic bullet. But if everyone does their part in their area and their community, it can make a big difference. Wow. Well, you have been all over the news these past few weeks for your yes, for your maybe your newest era. You launched an only fans account and it is a subscription service where fans can connect directly to you and interact. It is most famously known for adult entertainment. But tell us about what this new journey is for you and how it came together. So I've been going through a divorce. It was my second marriage and it was someone out here in South Africa. And I was working on a film in November in Canada. Now, my first ex-husband, who is my best friend, he's my manager and he's my acting coach. Like he's everything. His name is Joe. So Joe was up in Canada with me and we were just chatting about, well, now what? What's next? You know, I'm going through this divorce and am I going to stay in South Africa? Yes, because I'm working on the charity. I'm working on the sanctuary and you know, but it's hard because a lot of the acting is in the US and I'm not there. And so it's hard to support myself sometimes while I'm working on the charity stuff. And I told him how much I love connecting with fans when I do like comic cons. I've been doing comic cons for years now. And I've told the best stories by people that the movies that I've done meant something to them. And I've never gotten to see my career from a different lens. If that makes sense. So now I feel like I'm seeing some of my work, but from their viewpoint, which I never thought about before. I'd never really put myself in a different position to look at my own life. And it's been so amazing and touching to experience that from a different viewpoint. And so I told him how much I love connecting with my fans. And back when American Pie happened, we had built a website. And at that time, actors didn't have websites. It was a really new thing. Only adult entertainers had websites. There were no actors websites at the time. So people thought we were crazy for trying to do a website. And in that we did like we tried to do a fan club kind of thing. And I would chat with people on there. And it was just before it's time. The technology wasn't great. It was hard. And it was we tried to do like live streams. And I had worked with Maxim a few times. And we I think Maxim hosted a live stream and we crashed their server. It was just the technology wasn't there yet. So Joe knew about the platform. I really didn't know anything about it. And he's he's he was working on a actually like kind of documentary thing about it. So he had done a lot of research on it. He goes, well, what if what if you did your page there for fans? And we just started exploring the idea and asking about it. And I knew Denise was on there, Richard. So I, you know, I'd worked with Denise and love actually. So I contacted her and asked some questions. And yeah, the next thing I know, it was like, well, yeah, let's do this. Let's try it. Let's have some fun. Why not? So that's, you know, that's where it started. Yeah. So what can fans expect when they sign up for your only fans? Because reports have said that you brought in one million dollars in just your first week. And obviously, when people hear only fans, they have expectations. So what can people expect from you when they sign up? Well, OK, so yeah, in the first it did very well in the first nine days, so almost a week. But yeah, you know, everybody asked, well, what are the boundaries? And I think I'm still exploring that myself. I don't know because I've only been doing this less than a month. And I'm constantly doing content. And the more I do the content, the more comfortable I get with myself and with like chatting with the fans and and just putting like my life out there. Doing content is very different and very new for me. Yeah, because I never really did it even on like Instagram and Facebook. And, you know, I would do stuff now and then. And I'm like, nobody cares what I'm eating. Like nobody cares what I'm doing here. Like, you know, I really didn't expect the kind of response that we've gotten at all. I was just hoping somebody would show up. Like, I didn't know what it was going to do. And so I'm I'm still trying to to figure out. I don't I don't know. I mean, I've done everything from putting on a face mask and going to bed and getting up in the morning and like just content of my life and behind the scenes and things that I'm doing and, you know, hanging out by myself and just talking about like thoughts in my head. Like I'm doing like everything I can to just share my day to day life so that fans feel like they're there with me and they're a part of it. And they get that inside scoop of what it's like. I think I even I even did a video of my work, my actual workout with my trainer and just like, you know, this is this is what I'm doing. This is my life. So I'm doing a little of everything. Right. So yeah. Well, Shannon, thank you so much for stopping by. It is amazing how over your lifetime you have taken on so many different challenges, whether it's tennis or acting or poker or your charity. You've just like really dived headfirst into everything you've done. So we're excited to see where you go next. Thank you. I'd love to say that on June 28th in Las Vegas, we're doing a fundraiser. And it's a poker fundraiser and it's during the World Series of Poker just before the main event. So having into that community. So I would love to have you guys go. Where can people find more information about that? So if you go to our Instagram, Shannon Elizabeth FDN for Foundation at Shannon Elizabeth FDN, we've put a link in the bio for tickets. We're starting to do a lot of press on it. It'll be a link. There will be a link in my bio as well. I just haven't gotten there yet. OK. But but yeah, we're getting some amazing response for it. We're going to have some like surprise activations during it. We did it a couple of years ago and it was so much fun. So now it's bigger and better and we'll have some celebrity bounties that will be in the tournaments. So inviting all of you to come be a part of it. Let me know. And yeah, and if people sign up before the end of May, they get extra chips, which always helps because it is a cash prize. So you are playing for actual cash at the end of the day. So you need as many chips as you can. Great. But yeah, it's going to be a lot of fun. And there's quite a well known tournament director named Matt Savage, who's going to be our master of ceremonies. So it'll it'll be a fun time to tap into back into the poker community. I was a little scared doing it a couple of years ago and we had such an amazing turnout. So like, yeah, now we have the South African poker community that travels there as well. So it was a battle between the US pros and the South African pros, which I kind of love. I love that. That sounds so much fun. Great. So you can go to Shannon Elizabeth FDN on Instagram to get more information and your tickets for that. Thank you, Shannon. Thank you for being with us. Yeah, thank you guys. It was so much fun. Thanks for having me. Yes, go get some sleep. I was going to say it's bedtime. I actually have another one of these to do in a few minutes. Oh, nice. Enjoy. We do too. Oh, God. Thank you. Have a good night. Bye. Bye. Crazy South African. I'm on a journey. I know. That's like that's no joke either. I mean, I know. Getting into the weeds of the poacher like hugely dangerous people. Oh my God. What a hugely dangerous people. What a thing to tackle. Craziness. Crazy. Also, I'm so annoyed by the fact that I am not sure what the past tense of dive is, is dove? Dove? Dove. Dove. Yeah, that's not a word. Dove. Yes, I dove into the pool. Dove into the pool. I dove into a career. I would never say dove. I want to say something else. I don't like it. I don't like it. You don't use doves. When doves cry. When doves cry. When doves cry. Exactly. Thank you. That's what bothers me about it. Now we just that one is dove. Dove, but yes. Yeah. I don't like it. I love that Will and I both made this same joke in two different directions. Two different directions. Both were like. Doves. Doves cry. Doves cry. Oh, man. Thank you all for joining us for this episode of Podmeets World. As always, you can follow us on Instagram, podmeetsworldshow. You can send us your emails, podmeetsworldshow at gmail.com. And we've got merch. My new only fence is at Will Friedle puts on more clothes. It covers himself up. Covers himself up even more so you can't see me at all. Will wearing armor. Exactly is what you want. Merch. Podmeetsworldshow.com. Writer, send us out. We love you all. Pod dismissed. Podmeets World is an I Heart podcast produced and hosted by Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle and Ryder Strong, executive producers Jensen Karp and Amy Sugarman, executive in charge of production Danielle Romo, producer and editor Tara Subbash, producer Maddie Moore, engineer and Boy Meets World superman, Easton Allen. Our theme song is by Kyle Morton of Typhoon. Follow us on Instagram at podmeetsworldshow or email us at podmeetsworldshow at gmail.com. This is an I Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.