Then and Now: The Stars of Freaks & Geeks 22 Years Later

When Freaks and Geeks premiered on NBC in 1999, it was met with critical acclaim. Created by Paul Feig and executive produced by Judd Apatow, it was the first teen comedy/drama to be centered around early 1980s nostalgia. Unfortunately, the show was constantly shifted to different time slots and was never able to find an audience. Remarkably, when the producers created a website for the show, NBC refused to publicize it as they saw the Internet as competition. Ultimately, Freaks and Geeks would be canceled after 12 episodes. It was nominated for three Emmy Awards and several publications have placed it on their list of greatest shows of the 2000s and even all time. It also launched the careers of several actors who remain successful more than two decades later. Let’s see what the main cast is up to these days.

1. Linda Cardellini (Lindsay Weir)

Although Lindsay excels academically, she’s a bit of a rebel, hanging out with the slacker crowd. One of the focuses of the show is how she tries to balance her previous reputation as a geek while seeking approval from her “freak” friends.

Cardellini continues to have a solid career. In the early 2000s she became a regular cast member of ER for its final six seasons as Samantha Taggart, received a Primetime Emmy nomination for her recurring role as Sylvia Rosen on AMC’s Mad Men, and currently co-stars alongside Christina Applegate on the Netflix dark comedy series Dead to Me, for which she has also earned a Primetime Emmy nomination.

2. John Francis Daley (Sam Weir)

Lindsay’s younger brother Sam was one of the main geeks, finding himself in awkward situations and getting picked on. But at the same time, he was a good kid who was loyal to his friends and older sister.

Aside from portraying FBI criminal profiler Dr. Lance Sweets in Bones from 2007-2014, he has co-written several films with Jonathan Goldstein including Horrible Bosses, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, Horrible Bosses 2, Spiderman: Homecoming and Game Night. He’s set to direct a Dungeons & Dragons movie in 2022.

3. Samm Levine (Neal Schweiber)

Sam’s best friend, Neal was very much a geek with a love for all things science, although he regarded himself as more mature and worldly than his peers. He had a secret crush on Lindsay.

Levine appeared in several popular teen flicks in the early 2000s including Wet Hot American Summer and Not Another Teen Movie. He could also be seen in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds. He plays bit roles on TV shows and is the guest host on the Internet talk show Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show.