What Happened To Shannyn Sossamon, The Ultimate '00s It Girl?
Shannyn Sossamon sprang onto the scene in the early 2000s, best known for her leading role opposite Heath Ledger in 2001's A Knight's Tale. Sossamon followed up that hit with several other movies, including 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002) and The Rules of Attraction (2002). By mid-decade, however, Sossamon had generally faded from the Hollywood spotlight.
What happened to Shannyn Sossamon in the aftermath of stardom isn't unique to her as an actress. Her career, her life, and her passions extended outside of acting long before she appeared on screen and, ultimately, sent her in several directions on the heels of movie success. Where Shannyn Sossamon is now reflects her multitude of talents and interests - and a bit of just how fickle Hollywood can be.
- Photo: A Knight's Tale / Sony Pictures Releasing
She Was Initially 'Discovered' DJing Gwyneth Paltrow’s Birthday Party
Born in Hawaii and raised in Nevada, Shannyn Sossamon got her start on a whim after being spotted by a casting director at Gwyneth Paltrow's birthday party. Sossamon was working at the party, DJing alongside a friend. She only stayed at the party briefly, leaving after about an hour due to boredom.
Her time at the party was short, but it made an impact. Sossamon caught the eye of Hollywood casting director Francine Maisler. In 2001, Sossamon recounted the event, noting the casting director "called me the next day, we had a little meeting, it was no big deal."
For Sossamon, the idea of being "discovered" was overstated:
Can we put an end to this rumor, please? The story didn't go that quickly. I've lived [in Los Angeles] for five years, I'm a dancer, I've done lots of commercials, I read all the magazines, I've observed all the people in the business. It's really not that glamorous a story.
- Photo: A Knight's Tale / Sony Pictures Releasing
She Passed On Numerous Acting Jobs Before Taking A Part In 'A Knight's Tale'
After Sossamon moved to Los Angeles at the age of 17, she pursued a career in dancing. While acting was on her radar, Sossamon "was always interested in doing it, but I was so content with my life that I didn't really go after it."
Once she dipped her toe into acting - while working as a DJ - Sossamon did a lot of commercials. For her, commercials were "the awesomest job ever, you work for one day then just sit back and collect the residuals."
More and more auditions were sent Sossamon's way after she caught the attention of Hollywood casting directors. According to Sossamon, teen television shows and movies failed to capture her interest, so she turned several projects down.
It wasn't until she read A Knight's Tale, "an amazing story," in her words, that she found something that really appealed to her. Reportedly, Sossamon beat out actress Kate Hudson for the role.
- Photo: The Order / 20th Century Fox
She Reteamed With Heath Ledger One More Time
After appearing as Jocelyn opposite Heath Ledger's William Thatcher in A Knight's Tale, Sossamon and her costar found themselves together on screen again two years later. Sossamon and Ledger starred in Brian Helgeland's 2003 thriller, The Order (also known as The Sin Eater).
The Order features Ledger as Alex, a Catholic priest investigating the demise of a colleague. As the story unfolds, Alex connects with escaped mental patient Mara, played by Sossamon. Their relationship, based on a mix of demonic possession and sexual temptation, factors heavily into the plot, but their reunion wasn't enough to save The Order from failing at the box office.
While Sossamon has remained relatively quiet about Ledger in the aftermath of his passing in 2008, she later called him "a very special spirit."
- Photo: Filippo mezetti / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
She Took Two Years Off To Be A Mother And Work In A Record Store
After making several successful movies in the early 2000s, Sossamon found herself on a different path - one to motherhood. She gave birth to her first son, Audio Science Clayton in 2003.
Sossamon worked in a record store after giving birth, another nod to her love of music. Sossamon admitted in 2008 that she wasn't ready for motherhood, but having a child made her "a better person... a better actress."
I like to look at the birth of my first son as a blessing of course, and he’s just the joy of my life and my soulmate. I can't imagine life without him, so it’s weird to think the other way... He completely grounded me and made me look at myself, and my life just became completely different. It was just a gift, and perfect timing, too.
- Photo: Wristcutters: A Love Story / Autonomous Films
She Went The Indie Route After Several Studio Movies
Sossamon's only acting credit between 2003 and 2005 was an appearance on Law & Order: Special Victim's Unit in 2004. It wasn't until 2006 that Sossamon found her next critical success, appearing in Wristcutters: A Love Story. The independent film, and Sossamon's performance, were widely praised.
She followed up Wristcutters with several mainstream appearances on the big and small screens, including playing opposite Jack Black in 2006's The Holiday and taking on a recurring role on CBS's short-lived series Moonlight in 2007.
Sossamon's next major independent film success was Road to Nowhere in 2010. Directed by Monte Hellman, Road to Nowhere is part romance and part thriller, weaving a story of crime, scandal, and intrigue. Sossamon was the first actor cast for the film, having been seen in an acting class by Road to Nowhere's producer, Steven Gaydos. He reportedly set up a meeting between Sossamon and Hellman, one that they "both felt was right" almost immediately.
Los Angeles Times film critic Kevin Thomas described Road to Nowhere as a film that "ultimately stands on the beauty and talent of its femme fatale, and Shannyn Sossamon is so stunning and gifted she actually withstands a remark comparing her to [1920s and '30s actress] Louise Brooks."
- Photo: Moonlight / CBS
She Spent A Few Years As A Low-Key Scream Queen
Not a fan of horror, Sossamon became somewhat of a staple in the genre. For Sossamon, "The only reason I've done a lot of genre is because it comes to me."
She's embraced the casting, however. Her appearance as a vampire in Moonlight was one that cult fans of the short-lived series enjoyed. "I definitely find very heavy roles easier than comedy," Sossamon noted in 2008. "I love playing a vampire."
Sossamon also appeared in psychological thrillers like One Missed Call, the television series Wayward Pines, horror sequel Sinister 2, and the Sleepy Hollow TV series. At times, stepping away from the horror genre seemed appealing, especially when she was approached for Sinister 2:
I really didn't want to do another horror film. You know, just because they're exhausting... I... went and met with [director] Ciaran [Foy] and… we were talking for two hours, and it just went by so quickly. And I walked out of the meeting with him and I thought gosh, he just made me excited to do Sinister 2.
- Photo: Rules of Attraction / Lions Gate Films
She Played Drums For An All-Star Rock Band
Sossamon has a passion for music, one that led her to play drums alongside her younger sister, Jenny Lee Lindberg, as members of Warpaint. She was a drummer for the band between 2004 and 2008, appearing as a vocalist and drummer on their first EP, Exquisite Corpse.
Sossamon later directed one of the band's music videos, for their song "Undertow," in 2010.
Sossamon told Vogue magazine in 2010, "I love music. I love playing music. I’m not very good, but I love playing drums, I like to play guitar, I like to sing, I like listening to all kinds of music. I have a piano in my house, so my son can learn; I don’t know how to play very well but like to pretend like I do."
- Photo: Wayward Pines / Fox
She Questioned Her Commitment To Acting
Sossamon considers herself a creative person but only recently came to the realization that acting is what she is meant to do.
In 2015, as Sossamon looked ahead to her roles in Wayward Pines and Sleepy Hollow, she noted her excitement to return to acting. According to Sossamon:
It’s exciting now to want to do it again. Desire, for all of us, is totally necessary to do anything worthwhile. I questioned that for a long time, and I thought maybe I just don't want to, maybe I don’t love it, but I think it’s just happening when it’s supposed to happen... But [acting] felt like it was supposed to be. I like to think it chose me instead of me choosing it, and I think I’m taking that very seriously now.
Sossamon continues to act, signing on to appear in High Holiday with Tom Arnold and Cloris Leachman in 2019.
- Photo: Over the Garden Wall / Cartoon Network
She Voiced A Character On Cartoon Network’s ‘Over the Garden Wall’
Cartoon Network aired its first animated miniseries, Over the Garden Wall, in 2014. Over the Garden Wall tells the story of brothers Wirt (Elijah Wood) and Greg (Collin Dean) as they travel through the Unknown with a bluebird named Beatrice (Melanie Lynskey).
According to the miniseries' creator, Patrick McHale, it is "a comedy, but first and foremost, it's trying to be an experience for the audience." The miniseries blends humor, mystery, and whimsy - with some creepy elements - and features the voice work of guest actors like Sossamon, as well as Chris Isaak, John Cleese, and Bebe Neuwirth.
Sossamon voiced Lorna, a young girl possessed by an evil spirit. To keep Lorna from acting upon her wickedness, she's been placed under a spell that forces her to do chores.
- Photo: Wayward Pines / Fox
She Appeared On ‘Sleepy Hollow’ And ‘Wayward Pines’
Adapted from the novel of the same name, Wayward Pines aired on Fox for two seasons. Sossamon played Theresa Burke, wife to Ethan, played by Matt Dillon. Produced by M. Night Shyamalan, among others, Wayward Pines is a suspenseful, science fiction drama that was well received during its first season (and struggled in its second).
For Sossamon, Wayward Pines, which first aired in 2015, marked the first half of a rebirth of sorts. While the show was exhausting for Sossamon, playing a "worried mother for eight months," she soon found herself on another Fox series, Sleepy Hollow.
Sossamon played Pandora, a mysterious new arrival to the town of Sleepy Hollow during the third season of the show.
- Photo: A Knight's Tale / Sony Pictures Releasing
Sossamon Has Struggled With The Ups And Downs Of Fame
With the gift of hindsight, Sossamon looks back on her quick rise to stardom and admits, "I was just totally not ready for that. And didn't even want it in a way.... It’s a privilege, it's a great job... I’m not complaining, but I don’t know; I've got a lot of 'Type A' in me. I like to have more ground beneath my feet and really understand where I am and what the goal is and what I want."
The ups and downs of her career, however, have been equally discombobulating for Sossamon. In 2001, she told Uproxx:
It doesn't feel like I have been [famous], to be honest. I know in the beginning, I was 21, and I had done four big films, one after the other. And then I was pregnant with my son. That felt like it a teeny bit. It was a big whirlwind basically. But when I had my boy I just kind of, I completely, everything stopped. Everything came completely to a total stop.
- Photo: Sinister 2 / Gramercy Pictures/Focus Features
She Highly Values Her Privacy In Her Personal And Professional Life
Sossamon told Uproxx in 2015, "I like privacy a lot," making note of how difficult it can be to be stopped and asked about her roles. She acknowledges, however, that she loves acting and her desire to do it continues to drive her, even with minor irritations like fans expecting her to list her "resume while you're in the grocery store and your three year old's crying."
She's also private about some of her acting processes. To prepare for her role in Sinister 2, Sossamon prepared a playlist specifically for her character, Courtney Collins. The list for Collins, a woman with two sons haunted by a demon, according to Sossamon, had "a lot of Butt Rock on it," but she was "more comfortable keeping it private."
When it came to defining butt rock, Sossamon described the list as full of music from her youth "that made me feel really uncomfortable because the adults around me loved it so much and thought they were so cool listening to these songs and drinking beer."
- Photo: 40 Days and 40 Nights / Miramax Films
Sossamon's Affinity For Unique Names Has Not Abated Over Time
Sossamon gave birth to Audio Science Clayton in 2003. The unique name drew so much attention that Sossamon joked, "I think I have made a bigger impact in the choosing of my son’s name than I have in my work."
When explaining how Audio Science got his name, Sossamon revealed that the child's father, Sossamon's former partner, writer Dallas Clayton, "read through the dictionary three or four times." They wanted a word, not a name, and while they were "going to call him Science... [they] thought it might get shortened to Sci, as in Simon." So they opted for Audio as a first name, Science for a middle name.
In 2012, Sossamon gave birth to her second son, Mortimer.
Sossamon's own name - Shannyn - was crafted by the actress. Her given name was Shannon (full name Shannon Marie Kahololani Sossamon), but she added a "y" because she "never felt like a Shannon." In hindsight, she wishes she'd changed her name entirely but, once success took hold, "the Y stuck."
