By cgaukrog
9:04pm PDT, Oct 9, 2022
_
One movie defined an entire generation of Bettys and Baldwins upon its 1995 release: "Clueless." Amy Heckerling's adaptation of Jane Austen's "Emma," which focused on a popular, well-meaning Beverly Hills high schooler trying to play matchmaker for all her friends, is one of the most critically acclaimed teen comedies ever. It also became a pop culture phenomenon that spawned a TV series, books, dolls, accessories and an entire new language that became quintessential '90s slang. The mostly unknown ensemble cast also turned into some of the hottest young stars of the decade. To celebrate Cher Horowitz star Alicia Silverstone's 46th birthday on Oct. 4, 2022, Wonderwall.com is taking a look at what its stars are up to now…
RELATED: The best high school rom-coms of all time
_
Alicia Silverstone led the "Clueless" crew as Cher Horowitz, Beverly Hills' resident teen matchmaker, a girl with the power to sweetly manipulate teachers into giving her better grades, turn any student into the most popular girl in school and seemingly develop a computer program to always have the best fashion ensemble.
RELATED: '90s rom-com leading men: Where are they now?
_
"Clueless" made Alicia Silverstone a household name. Following the comedy's massive success, the star — who skipped signing on for the TV adaptation — struggled to garner another major hit, taking roles in flops like 1995's "The Babysitter," 1997's "Excess Baggage" and 1999's "Blast from the Past." She also notably starred as Batgirl in the critically reviled "Batman & Robin" in 1997. In the 2000s, Alicia took smaller roles in projects like 2004's "Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed" and 2005's "Beauty Shop." She also moved into TV with the short-lived "Miss Match" in 2003 and voiced the titular character on the animated series "Braceface" in 2001. Alicia, who made her Broadway debut in a 2002 stage version of "The Graduate," became a noted animal rights activist and New York Times bestselling author with her vegan nutrition books. More recently, she appeared in the musical "Valley Girl" remake and played Kristy's cool mom on Netflix's "The Baby-Sitters Club" reboot. Alicia was married to musician Christopher Jarecki, with whom she shares son Bear, from 2005 to 2018.
RELATED: Best 2000s rom-coms to stream
_
Stacey Dash played Dionne Davenport, Cher's closest friend and confidante who assists the well-meaning teen with her various schemes while also handling a full plate of drama with her boyfriend, Murray. Dionne is also trying to navigate Los Angeles's crowded freeways without getting anyone killed.
_
"Clueless" was a breakout moment for Stacey Dash, who was 28 but playing 16 at the time of filming. The New York City-born actress reprised her role as Dionne on all three seasons of the film's TV adaptation. She then got parts in 2003's "View from the Top" and television shows like "Eve," "CSI," "The Game" and "Single Ladies." Stacey generated buzz for her work in Kanye West's "All Falls Down" music video in 2004 and a nude Playboy pictorial in 2006. Since then, the star has made more news for her politics than her acting. Stacey joined Fox News as a conservative commentator in 2014 and came under fire for numerous comments she made as an outspoken Republican. Fox News ended their contract with Stacey in 2017 and she soon attempted a California congressional run in 2018 though withdrew from the race a month after announcing her candidacy. She's been married four times: to producer Brian Lovell from 1999 to 2005, to British executive James Maby from 2005 to 2006, to actor Emmanuel Xuereb from 2009 to 2011, and to lawyer Jeffrey Marty from 2018 to 2020. She has two children.
_
Brittany Murphy shined as Bronson Alcott High transfer student Tai Frasier, who Cher immediately takes under her wing in an effort to make Tai popular and find her love despite the new student not caring about physical appearances or popularity.
_
Brittany Murphy became one of the biggest breakout stars of "Clueless." She followed it with roles in 1996's "Freeway" and 1999's "Drop Dead Gorgeous" and "Girl, Interrupted." Brittany also secured a lead voice role on the animated hit series "King of the Hill" for 13 seasons beginning in 1997. The Atlanta-born star made her Broadway debut alongside Allison Janney in a 1997 production of "A View from the Bridge." Brittany became a box office force in the 2000s with her work in 2001's "Don't Say a Word," 2002's "8 Mile," 2003's "Uptown Girls" and "Just Married," and 2005's "Sin City." She got a chance to show off her singing talents in the 2006 animated musical hit "Happy Feet" and released a dance track with DJ Paul Oakenfold that same year, "Faster Kill Pussycat," which topped Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart. Brittany made headlines for her relationship with her "Just Married" co-star Ashton Kutcher in the early aughts and her marriage to British screenwriter Simon Monjack in 2007. Brittany died at 32 in December 2009 after collapsing at her Los Angeles home. The coroner ruled that the cause of death was pneumonia with secondary factors of iron-deficiency anemia and multiple drug intoxication. Five months later, Brittany's husband was also found dead at their home from the same causes. Her final film, "Something Wicked," was released in 2014.
_
Paul Rudd set hearts aflutter as Cher's former stepbrother, Josh. The gloating environment-loving college student gets on Cher's last nerves before she starts to realize it might actually be love that she's feeling for her dad's ex-wife's son.
_
After "Clueless," Paul Rudd built a stacked career as a major supporting player in projects like 1995's "Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers," 1996's "Romeo + Juliet," 1998's "The Object of My Affection" and 1999's "The Cider House Rules." In 2002, he joined the cast of "Friends" for the show's final two seasons playing Phoebe's eventual husband, Mike. The actor became a comedic powerhouse in the 2000s with an endless stream of hits including "Wet Hot American Summer" in 2001, "Anchorman" in 2004, "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" in 2005, "Knocked Up" in 2007, "Walk Hard" in 2007, "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" in 2008, "I Love You Man" in 2009, "This Is 40" in 2012 and "Anchorman 2" in 2013. However, it was his work as the titular superhero in the 2015 Marvel film "Ant-Man" that turned Paul into a box office force: He reprised the role in 2016's "Captain America: Civil War," 2018's "Ant-Man and the Wasp" (which he also co-wrote) and 2019's "Avengers: Endgame." He more recently starred in the 2021 sequel "Ghostbusters: Afterlife." Paul married Julie Yaeger in 2003 after meeting her at his publicist's office shortly after completing "Clueless." The pair have two children.
_
Elisa Donovan played Amber, the snobbish teen everyone loved to hate who's in a constant battle to outshine Cher in every way, from outfits to friends to debate class assignments.
_
"Clueless" gave Elisa Donovan her first major role, as she'd only appeared on a few episodes of the TV hit "Blossom" before scoring the role. Elisa had a short stay ion "Beverly Hills, 90210" before reprising her role as Amber on all three seasons of the "Clueless" TV adaptation. She then scored small parts in 1998's "A Night At The Roxbury" and on TV shows like "Just Shoot Me!" and "Jack & Jill" before landing a lead role on the final seasons of "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" as Sabrina's friend and roommate Morgan. Since then, Elisa has starred in numerous indie films and holiday-themed TV favorites like "The Dog Who Saved Christmas" in 2009 and "12 Wishes of Christmas" in 2011. The New York-born actress most recently starred in the 2017 crime drama "MDMA." She married Charlie Bigelow, with whom she has a daughter, in 2012.
_
Donald Faison pushed all of Dionne's buttons as her well-meaning boyfriend, Murray, who — despite his love — can't help but start a fight with his girlfriend whether they're at school, at a party or even in the car.
_
Donald Faison followed "Clueless" with a role in 1995's "Waiting to Exhale" before reprising his role as Murray on all three seasons of the "Clueless" TV series. He also had recurring roles on '90s TV hits like "Felicity," "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" and "Sister, Sister." Donald continued working on the big screen in teen favorites like 1998's "Can't Hardly Wait," 2000's "Remember the Titans," 2001's "Josie and the Pussycats" and 2002's "Big Fat Liar." His biggest role to date came in 2001 with NBC's medical comedy "Scrubs." Donald played Dr. Christopher Turk on the hit sitcom until the series wrapped in 2010. Since then, he's continued working steadily on TV, lending his voice to "Robot Chicken" and more recently landing the drama "The L Word: Generation Q" in 2021. Donald has been married twice: to Lisa Askey from 2001 to 2005 and to CaCee Cobb since 2012. He has six children: one from a previous relationship, three with ex-wife Lisa and two with CaCee.
_
Jeremy Sisto drove fans crazy as the arrogant Elton, who ignores Cher's numerous attempts to set him up with Tai and reacts poorly to her dismissal of his romantic passes.
_
Jeremy Sisto followed "Clueless" with films like "Suicide Kings" in 1997, "Without Limits" in 1998 and the titular role in the 1999 miniseries "Jesus." In 2001, he earned critical acclaim for his work on the HBO drama "Six Feet Under," appearing on all five seasons of the hit series. He also starred in the horror flick "Wrong Turn" and the indie drama "Thirteen" in 2003 before appearing on the series finale of "Dawson's Creek" that same year. He starred on the short-lived NBC drama "Kidnapped" in 2006 and in the indie favorite "Waitress" in 2007 before joining "Law & Order" as Detective Cyrus Lupo for the procedural's final three seasons. Since 2018, Jeremy has solved crimes on the CBS drama series "FBI" and began starring on "FBI: International" in 2021. He also lent his voice to King Runeard in "Frozen II" in 2019. Jeremy wed actress Marisa Ryan in 1993 when he was 18. They divorced in 2002 and he married Addie Lane in 2009. The pair have two children.
_
Everyone's favorite stoner, Travis, was played by Breckin Meyer. The skater with a heart of gold loves Tai as much as his Egg McMuffins, and despite Cher's attempts to keep them apart, nothing can stop Bronson Alcott High's most tardy student from winning the girl.
_
After "Clueless," Breckin Meyer continued working consistently on the big screen with parts in "The Craft" and "Escape from L.A." in 1996, "54" and "Can't Hardly Wait" in 1998, "Go" in 1999, "Road Trip" in 2000, "Rat Race" and "Kate & Leopold" in 2001, "Garfield" in 2004 and "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" in 2009. The Minneapolis-born actor also made a splash on TV with voicework on "King of the Hill" alongside his "Clueless" love interest Brittany Murphy. Breckin has also written and voiced characters for the Adult Swim hit "Robot Chicken" since the show's debut in 2005, garnering himself an Emmy nomination. He was more recently seen on the NBC drama "Good Girls" in 2021. Breckin was married to film director Deborah Kaplan, with whom he has two kids, from 2001 to 2014. He's been dating actress Linsey Godfrey since 2017.
_
Justin Walker portrayed Christian, the new heartthrob on campus. Cher is determined to make him fall for her, and after having her assortment of romantic advances dismissed, discovers Christian is actually gay.
_
Justin Walker followed the hit teen comedy "Clueless" with films like 1997's "The Journey: Absolution" and 1999's "Splendor Falls" and an appearance on the series "V.I.P." in 1999. He co-hosted the talk show "The X Show" in 1999 and amassed only a handful of credits before leaving acting in the mid-2000s. Justin moved into the world of business, owning a restaurant in Rancho Mirage, California, and becoming a partner and CMO of Draftster.com, a defunct fantasy sports-wagering website. He hasn't made many appearances since leaving acting. He was most recently seen during a 2012 "Clueless" cast reunion organized by Entertainment Weekly that saw the cast interviewed on ABC's "Good Morning America" (pictured).
_
Dan Hedaya played Cher's strict-but-loving father, Mel, a well-paid litigator who wants nothing but the best for his daughter. Mel trains her on the art of negotiation but struggles to tell the difference between a Calvin Klein dress and underwear.
_
Post-"Clueless," established character actor Dan Hedaya appeared in movies including 1996's 'The First Wives Club," 1997's "Alien Resurrection," 1998's "A Night at the Roxbury," 2000's "Shaft" and 2001's "Mulholland Drive." The Brooklyn native also had small roles on "ER," "Law & Order," "Judging Amy," "Yes, Dear" and "Person of Interest." Dan has slowed down his acting career in recent years but was seen in 2016's "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" and has popped up on TV shows like "Gotham," "The Mindy Project" and "Blue Bloods."
_
The lovable Mr. Hall was played by Wallace Shawn. As Cher's debate teacher, Mr. Hall is a stickler for excellence, and Cher's determined to find him love in the hope that happiness will make him go easier on his students.
_
A few months after "Clueless" came out, Wallace Shawn voiced Rex in "Toy Story" then returned to the role for all three sequels. He also returned as Mr. Hall on the first season of the "Clueless" TV series. Since then, Wallace has lent his voice to projects like "The Incredibles" and "Chicken Little" and had major arcs on TV shows like "Gossip Girl" and "Crossing Jordan." More recently, he was seen in hits like "Book Club" in 2018 and "Marriage Story" in 2019. He now stars on the hit CBS comedy "Young Sheldon." Wallace's longtime partner is writer Deborah Eisenberg.
_
Twink Caplan portrays the intelligent and good-natured Ms. Geist, another of Cher's teachers-turned-pet projects who she's determined to set up with Mr. Hall in hopes of finding happiness for the pair.
_
Twink Caplan reprised her role as Ms. Geist on the "Clueless" TV series and executive produced the show. She's since appeared on TV shows like "Just Shoot Me," "Community," "CSI" and "Frasier" and popped alongside Darren Criss on the 2020 Quibi musical comedy series "Royalties."
