Tara Reid

Tara Donna Reid (/riːd/; born November 8, 1975)^[1] is an American actress. Her film roles established her status as a sex symbol in the late 1990s.^[2][3]

In film, Reid was the lead ensemble role as Vicky Lathum in the American Pie film series (1999–2001; 2012). Her other notable lead film roles include Urban Legend (1998), Body Shots (1999), Josie and the Pussycats (2001), Van Wilder (2002), My Boss's Daughter (2003) and Alone in the Dark (2005). She had supporting roles in the films The Big Lebowski (1998), Cruel Intentions (1999), Dr. T & the Women (2000), and Just Visiting (2001).

In television, Reid had recurring roles as Ashley on the soap opera Days of Our Lives (1995) and Danni Sullivan on the NBC series Scrubs (2003–2005). She had a co-lead role as secondary protagonist April Wexler in the Sharknado television film series (2013–2018). Reid hosted her own reality series on E!, titled Taradise (2005–2006).

Early life

Reid was born on November 8, 1975, and raised in Wyckoff, New Jersey, the daughter of Donna Reid (née Russo; 1947–2018) and Thomas Reid (1941–2016),^[4][5] both of whom were teachers and day-care center owners. Her father also worked on Wall Street.^[5] She is of mainly Irish descent with some Scottish, Italian, French, Hungarian, and English descent. Reid has twin younger siblings, Colleen and Patrick, and another brother, Tom.^[6]

She attended Professional Children's School in Manhattan.^[7]

Career

Reid began acting at age six.^[8] She appeared in the game show Child's Play and appeared in commercials for Jell-O, McDonald's, Crayola, and Milton Bradley. As a teenager, she was on Saved by the Bell: The New Class.^[9]

After moving to Hollywood in 1997, Reid transitioned to movies, landing a role in 1998's The Big Lebowski. Though the film disappointed at the box office, grossing only $17 million in the United States, it became a cult film. Later that same year, she appeared in a larger role in a more financially successful film, Urban Legend, where she portrayed a sexy radio host and which grossed just under $40 million in the United States and led to two sequels, though neither included Reid. In 1999, she appeared in a tiny role in Cruel Intentions. Reid achieved mainstream success when she portrayed the role of the virginal Vickie in American Pie (1999), which grossed over $100 million in the United States. The film also marked her first film to reach number one at the box office. In 2001, she reprised the role in American Pie 2, which opened to $45 million and grossed over $145 million in the United States, almost 50% more than its predecessor. Reid did not return for American Wedding (2003), but did reprise the character in the fourth theatrical film in the series, American Reunion (2012).

Following the success of American Pie 2, Reid starred in several commercial and critical misfires, including Josie and the Pussycats and Van Wilder. She also starred as the youngest daughter of a Texas gynecologist in Robert Altman's Dr. T & the Women, alongside Richard Gere. She returned to the small screen as a recurring character on the NBC sitcom Scrubs, appearing in 11 episodes of season three. Shortly thereafter, she appeared alongside Ashton Kutcher in My Boss's Daughter, for which she was nominated for both Worst Supporting Actress and Worst Screen Couple at the 2004 Golden Raspberry Awards.

In 2005, she co-starred in infamous German filmmaker Uwe Boll's Alone in the Dark with Christian Slater. Her mispronunciation of "Newfoundland" became a popular Internet catchphrase. The film was panned by critics and Reid received a Razzie Award nomination for Worst Actress. Reid signed on to host the E!'s Wild On Tara Reid (later renamed Taradise), a program that showcased high-society vacations and hot spots.^[10] The show premiered on August 10, 2005,^[11] but it was cancelled in September, with Ted Harbert, E! Network's president, saying it was "incredibly difficult to produce with someone well-known."^[12]In January 2007, Reid filmed a commercial with Daniel Conn for Dodo, an Australian budget telephone and internet service provider. Between 2007 and 2008, she starred in several direct-to-video films, including 7-10 Split/Strike, If I Had Known I Was a Genius (which was released at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival), and Clean Break/Unnatural Causes. She also played the main character in the television film Vipers. In 2010, she landed the role of Bonnie in the thriller film The Fields, which was released in 2011. In March 2011, she filmed a Funny or Die spoof trailer for The Big Lebowski 2.^[13]

On August 18, 2011, Reid was the second housemate to enter the British reality series Celebrity Big Brother 8. On September 2, she received the fewest votes and became the third celebrity to be evicted from the house.^{[citation needed]}

In October 2011, Reid appeared in Jedward's music video for "Wow Oh Wow".^[14] In 2014, she appeared in their music video for "Ferocious".

In 2013, she appeared in the hit Syfy film Sharknado which spawned five sequels in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018. Other projects Reid appeared in during the mid-2010s included comedy spoof The Hungover Games, horror film Charlie's Farm, the Bollywood film Tie the Knot, and the television series The Big Big Show with Andrew Dice Clay and Tom Green.^[15]

In 2019, Reid guest-starred as herself in an episode of The Boys where she attended a comic convention with Billy Zane.

In 2023, she appeared in 2 episodes of Special Forces: World's Toughest Test.^[16]

In November 2025, Reid said she was drugged at a Rosemont, Illinois bar, local Police say "surveillance footage shows no evidence of anyone tampering with Tara Reid’s drink at the Rosemont DoubleTree hotel bar," noting a bartender covered her drink as standard procedure.^[17][18][19]

Other ventures

Reid has appeared on the cover of magazines including CosmoGirl, Rolling Stone, Seventeen, Maxim, Playboy,^[20] Stuff, and FHM.

In 2007, Reid was invested in three restaurants (Bella, Geisha House, and The Shore) and opened Ketchup, a fast-food restaurant based in Los Angeles.^[21]

Reid and Ed Hardy designer Christian Audigier designed Mantra, a clothing line that hit high-end department stores in 2009. In 2014, she released a new swimwear line and a perfume, Shark by Tara, inspired by the film franchise Sharknado.^[22][2]

During the COVID-19 lockdowns, Jedward moved in with Reid in Los Angeles.^[23]

Personal life

Reid has never married and has no children, which she says negatively affected her career. She froze her eggs in 2021.^[24]

In March 2000, Reid met Carson Daly on the set of Total Request Live and they began dating.^[25] They shared an apartment in New York City and Daly proposed on October 29, 2000.^[25] In June 2001, Reid and Daly broke off their engagement.^[26]

On January 18, 2010, Reid's then-boyfriend, Michael Axtmann, an Internet entrepreneur from Nuremberg, proposed to her at The Little Door restaurant in Los Angeles. The couple had reportedly planned an intimate ceremony for summer 2010.^[27] On April 20, it was reported that the wedding had been called off and the relationship had ended.^[28]

In November 2010, Reid began dating Danish businessman Michael Lillelund. Reid's spokesman reported that she and Lillelund had married the day before in Greece.^[29] Lillelund denied it, saying he had not been in contact with Reid in months.^[30]

In August 2011, Reid publicized that she had married Bulgarian financier Zachary Kehayov. In October of that year, she announced that they were not legally married.^[30]

Between 2013 and 2014, Reid was dating Israeli musician Erez Eisen from the band Infected Mushroom.^[31]

In 2015, she dated Aaron Kaufman; he was fired as an executive of Blue Shield of California and sued by the company after he allegedly spent $100,000 of personal expenses, including trips with Reid, on his company credit card.^[32]

In 2016, Reid and actor Dean May participated in Marriage Boot Camp, but were rejected when they were revealed not to be in a relationship.^[33]

In September 2019, she began dating Nathan Montpetit-Howar, a music producer.^[34]

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

Notes

1. ^ The award was given to Reid for "significant contributions to the film industry".^[51][52]

References

1. ^ instagram.com
2. ^ "Tara Reid Is Not a Loser". Vice. August 31, 2014.
3. ^ Lansky, Sam (July 30, 2014). "Taradise Lost: Tara Reid's Sharknado Comeback". Time
4. ^ "Tara Reid Reveals Her Father Died in Emotional Instagram Post". Life&Style. December 30, 2016.
5. ^ Webber, Stephanie (December 30, 2016). "Tara Reid Reveals Her Dad Died: He Was 'My Entire World'". Us Weekly
6. ^ "Five questions with Tara Reid". The Bryan Times. Associated Press. April 5, 2002. p. 2.
7. ^ "Professional Children's School: Distinguished Alumni". Professional Children's School. Archived April 12, 2010 at the Wayback Machine.
8. ^ VanHoose, Benjamin (June 2, 2023). "Tara Reid Says She Was 'Punished' for Having 'Great Time' in Her Youth: 'I Never Did Anything Wrong'". People
9. ^ "TARA REID". Tribute
10. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (September 4, 2005). "The No. 1 Network of Never-Were-Land". The New York Times
11. ^ "Tara Reid visits Paris and Paris". Today. Associated Press. August 5, 2005.
12. ^ "It's closing time". Chicago Tribune. September 21, 2005.
13. ^ Collis, Clark (March 29, 2011). "Tara Reid talks about making her new 'Big Lebowski 2' spoof for FunnyOrDie -- EXCLUSIVE". Entertainment Weekly
14. ^ "Jedward shoot video with Tara Reid". RTÉ. October 31, 2011.
15. ^ "Tara Reid". Rotten Tomatoes
16. ^ Gordon, Meredith (September 24, 2025). "'American Pie' Star Tara Reid, 49, Shares Recent 'Glow Up'". Parade
17. ^ "Tara Reid says a spiked drink ‘knocked me out immediately’ and led to her hospitalization". Los Angeles Times. November 25, 2025.
18. ^ "Tara Reid taken to hospital after falling ill at Chicago area hotel". NBC News. November 25, 2025.
19. ^ "Surveillance footage shows no tampering of Tara Reid’s drink, Rosemont police say". fox32chicago.com. 2025-12-03. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
20. ^ Renfro, Kim (September 28, 2017). "The 21 most famous women to ever appear on Playboy's cover". Business Insider
21. ^ Balla, Lesley (March 15, 2007). "You Need a Lot of Tomatoes to Make Ketchup: Tara Reid, Restaurant Investor". Eater
22. ^ Stampler, Laura (July 31, 2014). "Tara Reid Created a Perfume Called 'Shark'". Time
23. ^ "Jedward are quarantining in LA with American Pie actress Tara Reid". TheJournal.ie. May 21, 2020.
24. ^ VanHoose, Benjamin (June 29, 2021). "Tara Reid Says She Froze Her Eggs in Case She Wants Kids Someday: 'Very Comfortable Where I'm at'". People
25. ^ Grossberg, Josh (October 31, 2000). "Sorry, Girls: Carson Daly, Tara Reid Engaged!". E! News
26. ^ "Carson Daly and Tara Reid Confirm Split". ABC News. July 3, 2001.
27. ^ "Michael Axtmann, Tara Reid Call Off Wedding". CBS News. April 21, 2010.
28. ^ "Tara Reid Calls Off Wedding". People. April 20, 2010.
29. ^ Garcia, Jennifer (August 14, 2011). "Tara Reid Marries in Greece". People
30. ^ "Tara Reid says her Greek wedding wasn't real". Today. Us Weekly. October 25, 2011.
31. ^ "Tara Reid Declares Summer is For Singledom". In Touch Weekly. October 22, 2017.
32. ^ Terhune, Chad (April 24, 2015). "In suit, Blue Shield cites extravagant spending by fired executive". Los Angeles Times
33. ^ Streisand, Elizabeth Durand (August 6, 2016). "Tara Reid and Boyfriend Admit They Lied to Get on 'Boot Camp'". Us Weekly
34. ^ Fernández, Alexia (September 5, 2019). "Tara Reid Is Instagram Official with Boyfriend Nathan Montpetit-Howar as They Vacation in Mexico". People
35. ^ Blanks, Jamie; Englund, Robert; Gayheart, Rebecca; Devine, Loretta; Reid, Tara; Rosenbaum, Michael; Witt, Alicia (2018). "A Cast of Legends" (Blu-ray; disc 2). Urban Legend. Urban Legacy. Scream Factory
36. ^ Salud, April (2017-09-27). "Josie and the Pussycats Rock LA Reunion Celebrating Vinyl Reissue & The Most Authentic Fake Band Ever". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-01-03.
37. ^ "Review: Incubus". JoBlo. Archived from the original on May 25, 2013. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
38. ^ Cloris Leachman and Tara Reid star in 'The Fields'
39. ^ Tara Reid Going Back to the Bar For 'Last Call' Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine Actress Archives. 9 August 2011
40. ^ Tara Reid and Mischa Barton summon evil in Ouija House first look. Entertainment Weekly. October 17, 2018
41. ^ "Yes, Tara Reid's 'Hedgehog' Movie Is Real and She Thinks the Poster Is a Disaster, Too (Exclusive)". Toofab. September 20, 2017. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
42. ^ Beck, Lia (2022-07-18). "See '00s Teen Star Tara Reid Now at 46". Best Life. Retrieved 2022-09-04.
43. ^ Norrie, Doug (2022-02-18). "Tara Reid Cast As Lead In Bikini Contest Movie". GIANT FREAKIN ROBOT. Retrieved 2022-09-04.
44. ^ "Blood-curdling vampire flick 'Bloodthirst' is 2021's must-see horror for Mem Ferda". Film-News.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-09-04.
45. ^ "HRIFF 2025 Award Winners". Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival. Archived May 12, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
46. ^ "Credit due: Tara Reid's amazing work ethic is a talent we can all admire". the Guardian. 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-09-04.
47. ^ "2000 Young Hollywood Awards". Awards & Winners. Archived from the original on 2025-05-12. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
48. ^ Stopera, Matt (February 3, 2023). "Here's What The 'Hottest Girl' Looked Like From 1999–2018; Like, There Literally Were Nominees And An Award". BuzzFeed. Archived May 16, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
49. ^ "24th Annual Golden Raspberry (RAZZIE®) Award Nominations". Razzies.com. March 18, 2004. Archived from the original on January 28, 2004. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
50. ^ Gibson, Ellie (January 31, 2006). "Boll nominated for Razzie". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived May 16, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
51. ^ "CIFF Winners: 2025". Chandler International Film Festival. Archived May 12, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
52. ^ Reid, Tara [@tarareid] (March 5, 2025). "I won! So proud to announce that I won Best Actress for my role in Dr. Quarantine at the Chandler International Film Festival! (...)". Archived May 12, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 12, 2025. – via Instagram. Meta Platforms
53. ^ Reid, Tara [@tarareid] (March 9, 2025). "I got good news! we did it, we won again. Best actress for Hollywood Film Festival (...)". Archived May 12, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 12, 2025. – via Instagram. Meta Platforms

External links

• Tara Reid on Twitter
• Tara Reid on Instagram
• Tara Reid at IMDb