'American Pie' star Shannon Elizabeth makes rare admission about legacy role

Shannon Elizabeth has been opening up about how her breakout role in American Pie shaped public perception of her.

As fans will remember, Elizabeth portrayed Nadia, the alluring foreign exchange student who quickly became one of the film’s most talked-about characters.

However, in a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, the actress revealed that the confident, bold persona audiences saw on screen was far removed from her actual personality.

Reflecting on the impact of the role, Elizabeth said that many people assumed she was just like her character.

“For me, it was a role, it was playing a character,” the 52-year-old actress told the outlet explaining that what viewers saw was simply part of the performance.

“But even in my real life, I’m just not the girl that likes to be naked, ever.”

The actress added that her lifestyle off-screen is far more modest than fans might expect.

“Even at home I’m always covered up,” she explained. 

“Like I have friends that sleep in the nude and they don’t mind walking around that way. That was never me, but because that was kind of my coming out, everyone assumed I was that girl.”