THEN AND NOW: The cast of 'Almost Famous' 20 years later

Before "Almost Famous," actress Kate Hudson had appeared in a few movies, like "Gossip," and on a couple of TV shows, but Penny Lane was the role that truly launched her career.

The role earned her an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe.

Throughout the 2000s Hudson went on to star in the rom-coms "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days," "Bride Wars," "You, Me and Dupree," and "Something Borrowed." She also had a recurring role on the musical comedy series "Glee."

Although she continues to act, according to Forbes, Hudson has shifted some of her focus to growing her athleisure clothing brand, Fabletics, which she cofounded in 2013.

The actress is currently working on the upcoming musical drama "Music," which is set to be released this month.

At the time of his casting, Patrick Fugit was 16 years old and had just a few TV movie and series credits to his name.

After the 2000 film, Fugit earned notable roles in other cult-classic films like "White Oleander," "Saved!" and "Wristcutters: A Love Story." He later reunited with "Almost Famous" director Crowe in 2011 for "We Bought a Zoo."

In more recent years, the actor has appeared in successful movies including "Gone Girl" and "First Man," and he's also worked on TV series like Cinemax's "Outcast" and USA's "Treadstone."

Fugit's latest major film credit was starring in the horror movie "My Heart Can't Beat Unless You Tell It To."

Prior to "Almost Famous," Billy Crudup was best known for his 1997 role as long-distance runner Steve Prefontaine in "Without Limits" and for voicing Ashitaka in the English dub of the anime "Princess Mononoke."

He'd also starred in the original cast of the Broadway revival "The Three Sisters" in 1997.

After "Almost Famous," the actor went on to land major roles in successful films like "Big Fish," "Mission Impossible: III," "The Good Shepherd," "Watchmen," "Public Enemies," and "Eat Pray Love."

He also appeared in the Oscar-winning film "Spotlight" and Oscar-nominated drama "Jackie."

The native New Yorker continued his work on Broadway in "The Elephant Man," "Arcadia," and "Waiting for Godot," among other productions. His work on the stage has earned him three Tony Award nominations and one win.

Most recently, he's been starring as Cory Ellison on Apple TV Plus' "The Morning Show," which earned him a Critics' Choice Television Award in 2020.

At the time, Jason Lee was best known in Hollywood for working with director Kevin Smith on 1990s indie films like "Mallrats" and "Chasing Amy."

Before he started acting, Lee also had a successful career as a professional skateboarder in the 1980s.

Lee is best known today for his starring role as Earl Hickey on the NBC series "My Name Is Earl," which earned him Golden Globe nominations in 2006 and 2007.

He continued his film career in hits like "Vanilla Sky," "The Ballad of Jack and Rose," and the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" franchise.

The actor also went on to a successful voice-acting career, voicing Syndrome in Pixar's "The Incredibles" Bones in Sony's "Monster House," and the title character in Disney's "Underdog." More recently, the actor voiced a character on the Cartoon Network series "We Bare Bears."

In addition to acting, Lee remains involved in other business ventures, including a photography site, a brewpub, and his company Stereo Skateboards.

Before landing the role in "Almost Famous," Frances McDormand had nearly two decades of acting experience under her belt.

She was best known for her roles in "Raising Arizona," "Mississippi Burning," and "Fargo," which won her an Oscar.

The actress also had a successful career on the stage, appearing in the Broadway shows "Awake and Sing!" and "A Streetcar Named Desire."

McDormand went on to work on notable films like "Something's Gotta Give," "Burn After Reading," "Hail, Caesar!" and "Isle of Dogs."

She also starred on the HBO miniseries "Olive Kitteridge," which earned her an Emmy in 2015.

McDormand continued her career on Broadway in "The Country Girl" and "Good People," which earned her a Tony award.

The decorated actress also went on to earn a second Academy Award in 2018 for her starring performance in "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri."

Most recently, McDormand was starring on Amazon Prime/BBC 2's "Good Omens," and she's currently working on the upcoming films "Nomadland," "The French Dispatch," and "Macbeth."

At the time, Terry Chen had a few credits to his name, which mostly consisted of minor parts on TV series and small roles in movies like "Romeo Must Die."

After "Almost Famous," Chen went on to films like "40 Days and 40 Nights," "I, Robot," "Snakes on a Plane," "The A-Team," "The Cabin in the Woods," and "Godzilla."

He's also had a successful career on TV, with credits on shows including Syfy's "Battlestar Galactica," A&E's "Bates Motel," Netflix's "House of Cards," Netflix's "Jessica Jones," and Lifetime/Hulu's "Unreal."

Chen recently appeared in "Coffee and Kareem," and he's set to be on the upcoming drama "Falling."

Prior to "Almost Famous," Rainn Wilson had stage-acting experience on and off Broadway, and he appeared in the 1999 comedy "Galaxy Quest."

Today, Wilson is best known for his nine-season run as Dwight Schrute on the award-winning NBC comedy, "The Office." But he also has credits on notable shows like HBO's "Six Feet Under" and CBS' "Mom."

The comedic actor continued his film career in "My Super-Ex Girlfriend," "Juno," "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," and "The Meg."

Wilson also cofounded the media company SoulPancake in 2009 and published his memoir, "The Bassoon King," in 2015.

He is currently working on the upcoming series "Utopia" and "The Power."

At the time, Philip Seymour Hoffman was already a familiar face in Hollywood. He was best known for his roles in "Twister," "Boogie Nights," "The Big Lebowski," and "Magnolia."

Hoffman continued his successful career in "Charlie Wilson's War," "Doubt," and "Capote" — all of which earned him Academy Award nominations.

The actor also starred in "The Ides of March," "Moneyball," "The Master," and "The Hunger Games" series.

Hoffman died by apparent drug overdose in 2014 at the age of 46.

Prior to "Almost Famous," Zooey Deschanel had a few acting credits, including 1999's "Mumford" alongside Lee.

After "Almost Famous," Deschanel appeared in several notable films, including "Elf," "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," "Yes Man," "500 Days of Summer," and "Rock the Casbah."

She later went on to star as Jess on the hit Fox comedy "New Girl," which made her a household name.

In addition to acting, the Los Angeles native founded the women-centered media company Hello Giggles in 2011. She's also an accomplished musician, performing as half of the folk duo She & Him since the early 2000s.

Most recently, Deschanel voiced a character in the "Trolls" franchise.

Prior to the 2000 film, 18-year-old Jay Baruchel had appeared on the Canadian YTV series "My Hometown" and "Are You Afraid of the Dark?"

Additionally, he had a few small movie roles under his belt.

Over the past two decades, Baruchel continued his TV career on hit shows like Fox's "Undeclared." He also went on to act in the award-winning film "Million Dollar Baby."

However, the actor is now better known for his work in cult-classic comedies like "Knocked Up," "Tropic Thunder," "She's Out of My League," and "This Is the End." He also voiced Hiccup in the popular "How to Train Your Dragon" series.

More recently, Baruchel appeared on the Fox series "The Moodys."

At the time, Pauley Perrette had a few TV and movie credits to her name, including guest appearances on NBC's "Fraiser" and ABC's "The Drew Carey Show."

After "Almost Famous," Perrette found mainstream success starring as forensic scientist Abby Sciuto on the CBS crime drama "NCIS" for 16 years.

In addition to acting work, she's also had a career in music as a member of the punk-rock band Lo-Ball in the early 2000s.

Most recently, the actress starred on the CBS comedy "Broke."

Before landing a role in the 2000 film, Jimmy Fallon was best known for being a cast member on NBC's "Saturday Night Live."

Throughout the early aughts, Fallon continued to work on "Saturday Night Live."

He went on to become a household name after he was appointed the host of "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon," in 2009. The comedian held that post until he took over hosting duties from Jay Leno on "The Tonight Show" in 2014.

As of 2020, his Emmy-nominated talk show is in its seventh season and remains a favorite among US audiences.

In addition to TV work, the actor has appeared in a few films like "Taxi," "Fever Pitch," "Whip It," and "Jurassic World."

Fallon is currently working on the upcoming film "Marry Me."

At the time, Michael Angarano had appeared as a child actor in the 1990s films "For Richer or Poorer" and "Music of the Heart," among other film and TV credits.

After playing young William, Angarano went on to appear in the films "Little Secrets," "Sky High," "One Last Thing," "The Final Season," and "The Art of Getting By."

He's also found success on TV, with credits on Fox's "24," Cinemax's "The Knick," NBC's "Will and Grace," and NBC's "This Is Us."

New Zealand-Canadian Anna Paquin had been acting in films since the age of 11 — including "Jane Eyre," "She's All That," and "X-Men" — and had earned an Academy Award for her role in the 1993 film "The Piano" before appearing in "Almost Famous."

Throughout the two decades following "Almost Famous," Paquin has appeared in numerous high-profile films.

She continued her role as Rogue in the "X-Men" franchise, and she appeared in movies like "Blue State," "Scream 4," and "The Irishman."

The actress also went on to play Sookie Stackhouse on the critically acclaimed HBO series "True Blood," which ran for seven seasons.

More recently, Paquin appeared on CBC/Netflix's "Alias Grace," Showtime's "The Affair," and Pop's "Flack."

Before "Almost Famous," Bijou Phillips was primarily known for her modeling work, but she also had a few film credits under her belt.

After "Almost Famous," Phillips continued to act in films like "Havoc," "What We Do Is Secret," and "Black Limousine."

But she is perhaps more recognizable from her run as Lucy Carlyle on Fox's "Raising Hope."

Before the movie, Fairuza Balk had appeared in "Return to Oz," "Gas Food Lodging," and "The Waterboy," among other films.

Since appearing in the 2000 film, her notable credits include "Wild Tigers I Have Known," "Humboldt County," "August Falls," and "Trespassers."

On TV, the actress worked on Cartoon Network's "Justice League" and Showtime's "Ray Donovan." She's also currently set to appear on the upcoming series "Paradise City."

In addition to acting, Balk releases music and maintains a blog.

"Almost Famous" was Mark Kozelek's first acting role, but he was already a relatively well-known musician when he landed the role.

Although Kozelek did go on to appear in "Vanilla Sky," "Shopgirl," and "Youth," he's primarily spent the last 20 years growing his successful music career.

So far, he's contributed to more than 20 different studio albums, including his work with the bands Sun Kil Moon and Red House Painters and as a solo artist.

Prior to this role, Noah Taylor was already a relatively experienced actor, with credits in films like "Lover Boy," "Flirting," and "Life in the Fast Lane."

Taylor went on to appear in films including "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider," "Vanilla Sky," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "Edge of Tomorrow," "Paddington 2," and "Skyscraper."

He also gained fame on TV, playing recurring roles on HBO's "Game of Thrones," BBC's "Peaky Blinders," and AMC's "Preacher."

Additionally, Taylor plays the french horn, guitar, and piano for several rock bands.

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