It's been two decades since the release of the comedy classic Napoleon Dynamite, and, if you were a fan of that movie, you might be forgiven for wondering — what the heck happened to Jon Heder?
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00:00It's been two decades since the release of the comedy classic Napoleon Dynamite, and
00:04if you were a fan of that movie, you might be forgiven for wondering, what the heck happened
00:08to John Heeder?
00:09Fresh off the success of Napoleon Dynamite, John Heeder made a conscious effort to avoid
00:13being typecast.
00:14His solution?
00:15Get as far away from Napoleon as possible by playing a relatively normal character in
00:20a mainstream romantic comedy.
00:21In Mark Waters' 2005 rom-com Just Like Heaven, Heeder plays Daryl, a spaced-out bookstore
00:27clerk who helps Mark Ruffalo's David in his budding romance with a ghost named Elizabeth,
00:32played by Reese Witherspoon.
00:33Can't you feel that, man?
00:35There's like this cancer-causing ray of spirit hate searing right towards your body."
00:40Daryl and Napoleon couldn't possibly be more different, and Just Like Heaven gave Heeder
00:44the chance to really show off his range.
00:46Reviews were mixed, sadly, but the more positive reactions found the movie to be a charming
00:51romantic fantasy play.
00:52A.O.
00:53The New York Times called it impressively nimble and cheery, while Brian Lowry of Variety
00:57wrote,
00:58"...Waters ultimately accomplishes the oldest of fairytale tricks, generating just enough
01:02magic to rouse a slumbering movie from its trance even if the final experience is something
01:07less than heaven."
01:09After the instant success of Napoleon Dynamite, it didn't take long for Heeder to land yet
01:13another comedy role.
01:15In 2006, he played Clark in The Benchwarmers.
01:18The movie sees Clark and two of his friends, Richie and Gus, form a baseball team to compete
01:23with a group of local bullies.
01:24Oh!
01:25That's my miata!
01:27My bad!
01:28Kill him!
01:29For Heeder, it was a given that he'd play lighter roles after Napoleon Dynamite, and
01:33The Benchwarmers certainly fit the bill.
01:35As he told MovieWeb,
01:36"...I'm not gonna try to get people to cry."
01:38Unfortunately, The Benchwarmers wasn't too well-received.
01:41Today it holds a dismal 13 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.
01:45The consensus was that, despite being marketed as a comedy, the film simply wasn't that funny.
01:51That same year, Heeder added a brand new skill to his resume, motion capture.
01:55In the animated film Monster House, Heeder portrays Reginald Skull Skolinski.
02:00Part of the job involved wearing a motion-capture suit to bring Skull to life, a form of technology
02:05that was relatively new in 2006.
02:08Heeder explained to MovieWeb that playing Skull was a fun, yet challenging experience.
02:12He said,
02:13"...I love being in costume and hair and makeup, you know?
02:16It helps so much to be looking like the character.
02:18And you're not at all when you've got this wetsuit on with all these dots and you don't
02:22feel like your character and you're not on location."
02:24Heeder said that it would take hours to get fully ready for a day of motion capture, a
02:29process that, among other things, involved having a special helmet glued over his hair.
02:33He also revealed that he had particularly enjoyed working alongside his Monster House
02:38co-stars, Mitchell Musso and Sam Lerner, despite the fact that they wouldn't stop quoting Napoleon
02:42Dynamite at him.
02:44Heeder had to put in an unusual amount of physical work into 2007's Blades of Glory,
02:49which sees his character, Jimmy McElroy, join Will Ferrell's Chaz Michael Michaels to become
02:54figure skating's first all-male team.
02:57"...I'm not skating to anything with references to lady humps?
02:59I don't even know what that means."
03:01"...No one knows what it means, but it's provocative."
03:03Nevertheless, Heeder truly enjoyed bringing Blades of Glory to life.
03:08Not only did he appreciate the opportunity to work alongside Ferrell, but he also embraced
03:12the ice-skating training that they both had to undergo.
03:15At one point, however, Heeder broke his ankle on set, leading to fears that the production
03:19might get shut down.
03:20"...After I broke my ankle, they borrowed all the safety gear from Nickelodeon, you
03:25know, because they're, like, heavy on the arm pads and the helmets."
03:29Blades of Glory became a hit on its release in 2007.
03:33It earned 70 percent on the Tomatometer, with many critics in agreement that Heeder and
03:37Ferrell made the perfect comedy duo.
03:39We might not know whether Napoleon Dynamite got a happily ever after with Deb, but in
03:44the real world, John Heeder is definitely enjoying being a family man.
03:48In 2007, five years after he and his wife Kirsten tied the knot, the couple welcomed
03:53their first child, a daughter named Evan Jane.
03:55Since the birth of Evan Jane, the Heeders have welcomed three more children, two boys
03:59and a girl.
04:00On Instagram, the actor often posts photos and videos of his family of six, such as a
04:05Halloween snap from 2017 in which they sported a wide range of costumes, including, of course,
04:10Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite.
04:12In one interview, Heeder told The Hollywood Reporter that, despite working in Hollywood,
04:16he has been able to lead a normal life at home as a husband and father.
04:19He said,
04:20"...that's what I'm most proud of."
04:22In the 2009 web series Woke Up Dead, Heeder plays Drex Green, a struggling college student
04:28who is forced to reckon with his own resurrection as a zombie.
04:31Speaking about the show's unique premise, Heeder told Backstage,
04:34"...the project was the bending of genres.
04:36It really attracted me to the idea of a guy becoming a zombie, but he's conscious.
04:41So it's completely kind of throwing all the rules out the door."
04:45Yet there are the familiar aspects of zombiehood that come to play.
04:49According to the show's executive producer, Stan Rogo, Woke Up Dead originally began as
04:53a very high-minded concept.
04:55He has said that it was intended to be a reimagination of the classic zombie story that served as
05:00an allegory for the disconnection of youth.
05:02That premise changed over the course of time, however, resulting in a more outlandish, zom-com
05:07story.
05:08Sometimes, stardom isn't all that it's cracked up to be, and it certainly wasn't something
05:12that John Heeder aspired to when he set out to become an actor.
05:15"...How was school?"
05:16"...Worst day of my life, what do you think?"
05:19After the runaway success of Napoleon Dynamite, however, Heeder was thrust into the spotlight.
05:23Sadly, after a while, the negative aspects of fame started to weigh heavy on his mind.
05:28In 2021, he told The Hollywood Reporter,
05:30"...About 10 years ago, maybe more, I was letting it bother me a lot more.
05:34I felt like I was always having to deal with it, and tell people why people can't treat
05:38you this way.
05:39It really got to my head."
05:40Eventually, Heeder was able to alter his mindset and think more positively about his situation.
05:45He continued,
05:46"...I just didn't want to be bothered by it anymore.
05:48I know that sounds simple, but it really helped me change my perspective."
05:51Now, for example, Heeder welcomes strangers who approach him on the street because they're
05:55a fan of his work.
05:56He feels proud of films like Napoleon Dynamite and Blades of Glory, and is able to find happiness
06:01in knowing that they had such an impact on people.
06:03At the same time, however, he says he has no interest whatsoever in becoming more famous.
06:08Napoleon Dynamite might be a staple in pop culture, but even the biggest fans probably
06:13won't remember the extremely short-lived cartoon of the same name that aired on Fox in 2012.
06:19John Heeder and the entire cast of the original film voiced their respective characters on
06:23the show.
06:24According to co-developer, producer, and writer Mike Scully, the show's creators walked a
06:28fine line between maintaining the quirky nature of the movie and picking up the pace to make
06:32it work for animation.
06:33He told Flickering Myth,
06:34"...we knew it would have to be faster and more visual while still remaining true to
06:38the tone and characters of the film.
06:40We wanted to keep the small-town feel."
06:41Sadly, Napoleon Dynamite was canceled by Fox after a mere six episodes, despite it ranking
06:46number six in the top ten programs watched by teens at the time.
06:50Still, the show's abrupt cancellation didn't deter Heeder's desire to take on more voicework.
06:55He lent his voice to a number of projects in 2012 alone, and has continued to work steadily
07:00as a voice actor in the years since.
07:02Heeder's live-action career took something of a backseat as he shifted his focus to voice
07:07acting.
07:08That said, he did take another stab at dramatic acting with 2015's Walt Before Mickey, a biopic
07:13about Walt Disney's life in the years before creating Mickey Mouse.
07:17Heeder plays Walt's brother, Roy Disney, who helps him found his legendary animation
07:21studio.
07:22Despite its promising concept, Walt Before Mickey was hindered by financial limitations
07:26and production issues.
07:28First-time director Khoa Le took over while filming on the low-budget feature was already
07:32underway in Orlando, Florida.
07:34Reportedly, the previous director had been let go due to the pace at which they were
07:38shooting.
07:39But Le's appointment didn't solve every problem on the 25-day shoot, which was plagued with
07:43crew walk-offs, location damage, and payroll issues.
07:47The myriad production problems would likely have been overlooked had the resulting film
07:51been anything to write home about.
07:53Unfortunately, Walt Before Mickey was panned by the few critics who saw it.
07:57Movie Nation, for example, wrote,
07:58"'The dialogue is dull.
08:00Boilerplate corn.
08:01The performances are flat.
08:03The cinematography is flatter.'"
08:05John Heeder always felt like an outsider during his years living in Hollywood.
08:09Compared to his home state of Oregon, it was a completely different world.
08:12In one interview, Heeder gushed about his small-town childhood.
08:15I loved it.
08:16I'm obsessed with it, and I always tell people, like, how much, if I could match that childhood
08:21for my own kids or whatever, you know, I loved that.
08:24This is why, in the midst of the pandemic, the Heeder family moved to Washington state,
08:28right outside of Portland, Oregon.
08:30Though he does miss California and considers himself to be a Hollywood guy at heart, Heeder's
08:34current setting is exactly what he envisioned for him and his family.
08:37He told The Hollywood Reporter,
08:38"'I had always imagined this more of a picturesque life for us and a place with my family, with
08:44four seasons.
08:45In a much more normal environment, rather than raising them in Hollywood.'"
08:48Heeder admitted that he sometimes feels like an outsider in Washington as well, but he's
08:52come to realize that this isn't such a bad thing.
08:54He's now able to be part of two worlds, enjoying both a Hollywood career and a quieter setting
08:58with his family.
08:59For a while after his move from Hollywood, it seemed like Heeder's career was winding
09:04down, but he didn't disappear entirely.
09:06He appeared in the 2021 holiday flick Funny Thing About Love, and while this project was
09:11somewhat more wholesome than some of Heeder's previous movies, he seemed to have no problem
09:15with that.
09:16Speaking about adult-humored comedies in general, Heeder told The Hollywood Reporter,
09:20"...the pendulum is always swinging, but there are a lot of people out there who live their
09:24lives a certain way and they don't invite that in.
09:26But with this film, there is a cleanliness that feels wholesome and nice."
09:29Heeder explained that audiences should relate to the core themes of Funny Thing About Love.
09:34He added,
09:35"...in our society nowadays, too, so many people are online looking for love or to find
09:39their match.
09:40And during the holidays, people really want that someone special, and this film really
09:43speaks to that."
09:45As you might expect, Napoleon Dynamite remains John Heeder's favorite film of his decades-long
09:50career.
09:51In an interview with HuffPost, he said,
09:52"...obviously, it's my biggest film.
09:54To this day I'm pinching myself.
09:55Like, I made a movie and people saw it, more than a few people."
09:58Heeder said that he is proud to be part of a film that brings such a strong sense of
10:02nostalgia to adults who first saw it as kids or teens, similar to how he feels about movies
10:07from his own adolescence.
10:09He's also proud to have represented a different kind of nerd, one who isn't super smart or
10:13desperate to fit in.
10:14Rather, Napoleon marches to the beat of his own drum.
10:17Heeder explained,
10:18"...he doesn't know how much of an outcast he is, and that's what gives him that confidence.
10:22He's trying to be cool sometimes, but mostly he just goes for it and does it."
10:25"...what are you gonna do today, Napoleon?"
10:28"...whatever I feel like I wanna do, gosh!"
10:32Decades may have passed since Heeder shared the screen with the cast of Napoleon Dynamite,
10:36but he still reunites with them for the occasional project.
10:39In 2016, for example, he and Efren Ramirez appeared in a Burger King commercial to promote
10:43the chain's Cheesy Tots.
10:44"...dang it, those are good."
10:47Celebrating the movie's 20th anniversary at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, Heeder,
10:51Ramirez, and Uncle Rico actor John Grise got together to film a segment for social media.
10:57Heeder captioned the post,
10:58"...20 years strong and we're still as hot as the tots in my pocket burning my thigh."
11:03It's now been two decades since Napoleon Dynamite first lit up the indie movie circuit.
11:07It's crazy to think that John Heeder and his co-stars are all well into their 40s and
11:1150s now, although age has done nothing to change their dynamic.
11:15Need proof?
11:16Take a look at the film's 20th anniversary tour.
11:18Heeder traveled around the country with Efren Ramirez and John Grise to show the film to
11:22huge crowds of fans, many of whom dressed as their favorite characters for the occasion.
11:27Speaking with NBC North Carolina, Ramirez admitted,
11:29"...we didn't realize how big the movie was.
11:32When we showed up to these screenings, they were sold-out shows."
11:35At one screening in Orlando, Heeder revealed a shocking secret about Napoleon's legendary
11:39boogie to Jamiroquai's canned heat.
11:42In the event's Q&A, he said,
11:43"...it was all freestyle.
11:45You suckers who tried to learn the moves and do it for your middle school talent show wasted
11:49time.
11:50Shoulda just felt the love.
11:51Put on some sweet tunes and just feel the flow.
11:54That's what I did."
11:55Napoleon Dynamite and Pedro Sanchez go together like, well, like tater tots and ketchup.
12:00So it shouldn't be surprising that the actors who brought them to life worked together just
12:03as well.
12:05In 2024, John Heeder and Efren Ramirez took a break from their Napoleon Dynamite 20th
12:09anniversary tour to shoot a back-to-school ad for Gap Kids, playing off the personas
12:14that made them famous.
12:15In a video posted to Instagram, they spoke about their involvement as first-time choreographer
12:20— in Heeder's case — and first-time director — in Ramirez's.
12:23Neither were accustomed to these roles, but getting out of their comfort zone was the
12:27whole point of the ad.
12:28The accompanying caption read,
12:29Together with our cast, this dream team shows their combined superpower — being, and believing
12:35in, yourself.
12:36The ad itself, entitled Just Dance, features a group of Gap-clad kids rocking out to, you
12:41guessed it, Can't Heat by Jamiroquai.
12:43You're gonna go dance with them?
12:45What?
12:46You don't even know how to dance.
12:49Just do it from your heart."
12:50Heeder recently stepped into the recording booth for Thelma the Unicorn, which reunited
12:54him with Napoleon Dynamite writing-directing team Jared and Jerusha Hess.
12:59The Netflix release centers on a pink pony named Thelma who becomes an overnight singing
13:03sensation after being transformed into a unicorn.
13:06Heeder voices Reggie, a llama who, along with Otis, the donkey, forms a successful band
13:11with Thelma.
13:12Thelma the Unicorn received solid reviews from critics when it made its streaming debut
13:16on Netflix in the spring of 2024.
13:18Variety wrote,
13:19Netflix's Thelma the Unicorn avoids being rendered completely unoriginal by its overly
13:24familiar premise thanks to consistent splashes of acid humor and a plethora of wacky supporting
13:29characters.
13:30Heeder hasn't performed much in front of the camera in the last two decades, opting instead
13:34to focus primarily on voiceover work.
13:37That said, he has made a few live-action appearances in recent years, including a starring role
13:41in the 2024 comedy Plan B. The movie stars Jamie Lee as Piper, a woman who gets pregnant
13:47after a drunken one-night stand with her awkward neighbor, Evan, who is played by Heeder.
13:52Plan B premiered to little fanfare on VOD.
13:55It wasn't screened for critics, nor did it play at any festivals.
13:58But for anyone who's curious to see what Heeder looks like two decades after Napoleon Dynamite
14:03premiered, this movie is waiting for you to rent.
14:06In the 20 years since becoming a star, John Heeder has put most of his focus on growing
14:10his family with his wife, Kirsten.
14:12Of course, the couple's four children may have grown up wondering why so many strangers
14:16kept asking their father if he wanted tater tots.
14:19And as they've gotten older, it's become increasingly difficult for Heeder to hide
14:22his famous alter ego from them.
14:24Luckily for him, they kind of like the guy.
14:26Gosh!
14:27In an interview with E! News, Heeder acknowledged that his children had become aware of his
14:31Napoleon Dynamite persona, adding that they're even fans of the film.
14:35He said,
14:36"'They're very aware of the craze.
14:37My daughter actually enjoys it.
14:39She's seven.
14:40She's like, oh, can we watch clips from the movie?'
14:41His 10-year-old son, meanwhile, enjoys watching his dad get recognized in public."
14:46Heeder added,
14:47"'My son understands it for the fame aspect.
14:48I don't know if he cares that much about the movie, but he loves to tell people who I am.'"
14:53In the 20 years since Napoleon Dynamite became a cult sensation, one question has plagued
14:58its fans.
14:59Will we ever get a sequel?
15:00There have been rumors over the years, but nothing has come to fruition.
15:03Yet the rumors have intensified recently, with even John Heeder hinting that something
15:07might be in the works.
15:08Heeder has been in conversation with co-writer-director Jared Hess about a possible follow-up that
15:13would take the character in a darker direction.
15:15Speaking at a Wizard World panel, he said,
15:17"'I feel like the future for Napoleon would be a lot more raw and edgy.
15:21So whatever Jared comes up with would be fun to explore.'"
15:24Speaking in 2023 at Steel City Con in Pittsburgh, Heeder speculated about how Napoleon's life
15:29might look in a sequel, explaining,
15:31"'Part of the charm of Napoleon is the innocence of youth.
15:34They're in high school.
15:35They don't have any real responsibility or accountability to much.
15:39It's all coming of age.
15:40Napoleon today would be, he's entered the workforce, he's got responsibility, he's paying
15:45for maybe one or two alimonies, child support for one of them.
15:48So will we ever get a chance to see Napoleon in middle age?
15:51According to Pedro himself, we just might.'"
15:53Speaking to ComicBook.com in 2024, Efren Ramirez acknowledged the possibility, saying,
15:59"'Everyone wants a sequel.
16:01I can say this, legally, that the door's not closed yet.'"