‘Animal House’ Cast: Who Is Still Alive & Where Are They Now?
For fans of 1970s comedies and John Belushi, the two combined in such an iconic way to create the hilarious movie Animal House, based on a trouble-making fraternity, always going up against rival frats and authority including John Vernon as Dean Vernon Wormer. The film was also one of the first for stars such as Kevin Bacon and remains a cult classic. Just last year, Animal House celebrated its 45th anniversary, and in honor of that, let’s find out where the cast is today.
John Belushi (John “Bluto” Blutarsky)
d. 1982
Universal/Everett Collection; Columbia/Everett Collection
Near the tail end of his success on Saturday Night Live, Belushi began appearing in comedy films. After the success of Animal House, Belushi teamed up with fellow SNL alum Dan Aykroyd in The Blues Brothers. Unfortunately, his life and career were cut short when he died of a drug overdose in 1982 at the age of 33. A woman named Cathy Smith was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after she confessed that she dosed him with a mixture of heroin and cocaine that led to his untimely death. His final role was in Neighbors.
Peter Riegert (Donald “Boon” Schoenstein)
77
Universal Pictures/Everett Collection; Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images for TCM
After Animal House, Riegert went on to have a fruitful career with roles in The Mask, The Sopranos, The Good Wife, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Local Hero, The Practice and many more. He also ventured into screenwriting and directing, making his directorial debut with By Courier. He directed, cowrote and starred in the 2004 film King of the Corner. More recently, he has been working on adapting a murder mystery novel into a screenplay.
Karen Allen (Katy)
72
Everett Collection; Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney
We can’t forget Boon’s girlfriend, Katy, who grows tired of the frat boy debauchery. Perhaps her most well-known role is in the Raiders of the Lost Ark and several of the franchise sequels as Marion Ravenwood. She has also appeared in Year by the Sea, Scrooged and more recently Unsinkable. Having also studied textile and clothing design, she runs a textile design studio and store, has been a director on several theater productions and is on the faculty of the Theatre Department at Bard College at Simon’s Rock.
Tim Matheson (Eric “Otter” Stratton)
76
Universal Pictures/Everett Collection; Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for TCM
Prior to Animal House, Matheson was best known for roles in Leave It to Beaver and The Virginian. Matheson went on to appear in The West Wing and earned two Primetime Emmy nominations for his role as Vice President John Hoynes. He has directed on shows such as Criminal Minds and Psych, and more recently appeared in the popular Netflix series Virgin River and also Quantum Leap. He will be releasing his first book, Damn Glad to Meet You!, in November 2024, and you can preorder it here.
Tom Hulce (Larry “Pinto” Kroger)
70
Universal Pictures/Everett Collection; Rich Fury/Getty Images
After Lampoon’s, Hulce went on to receive an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Amadeus. ’90s kids may know Hulce for his voice as the role of Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He recently reprised the role in the Disney short Once Upon a Studio. Hulce is also known for Parenthood, Stranger Than Fiction, Jumper and TV movie The Heidi Chronicles. These days he spends most of his time as a director and producer in theater. He won a Tony Award for Best Musical as a producer for Spring Awakening.
Bruce McGill (Daniel Simpson “D-Day” Day)
74
Universal Pictures/Everett Collection; Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
He has a long list of roles as a character actor in film and TV. In the ’80s, McGill portrayed Jack Dalton in MacGyver and went on to appear in The Cleveland Show and Reacher. His longest and best-known role was in the TNT series Rizzoli & Isles. Film roles included My Cousin Vinny, Timecop and Lincoln. More recently he appeared in the series Lioness and the miniseries Love & Death. He has been married to his wife Gloria since 1994.
Kevin Bacon (Chip Diller)
66
Before Bacon became a household name in Footloose, he had a minor role in Animal House. He continued to find success in films such as Apollo 13 and A Few Good Men. More recently, he starred in the highly anticipated films Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F and MaXXXine. Married to actress Kyra Sedgwick for over 35 years, the longtime couple are always sharing their adventures of living the farm life.
John Vernon (Dean Vernon Wormer)
d. 2005
Universal Pictures/Everett Collection and Carlo Allegri/Getty Images
Vernon passed away in 2005 at the age of 72 following complications after heart surgery. Before his death, he appeared in films such as Ernest Goes to Camp, Killer Klowns From Outer Space andThe Naked Truth. His final role was as the voice of Dean Toadblatt in the Cartoon Network animated series The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy.
Verna Bloom (Mrs. Marion Wormer)
d. 2019
Everett Collection and Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Bloom was not only a movie actress but also a Broadway star and appeared in the show The West Wing. Her final film role was Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update before she died in 2019 from complications of dementia at 80 years old.
Stephen Furst (Kent “Flounder” Dorfman)
d. 2017
Universal Pictures/Everett Collection and David Livingston/Getty Images
Furst’s first big role was in Animal House after he was discovered by a producer. He was a pizza delivery driver who put his headshot in every pizza box. He reprised his character in the sitcom Delta House and appeared in St. Elsewhere, Murder, She Wrote and more. He also produced several movies including the tearjerker My Sister’s Keeper. Sadly, he died in 2017 at 63 years old from complications of diabetes.
Donald Sutherland (Professor Dave Jennings)
d. 2024
Everett Collection and Ferda Demir/Getty Images for ZFF
Last but not least, celebrated actor Donald Sutherland appeared as the liberal professor. He was already a huge star by the time he appeared in Animal House and continued to see big success. Some of his final roles before his death in 2024 include The Hunger Games franchise, Moonfall and Lawman: Bass Reeves. He was 88.
Who is your favorite character in Animal House?
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