The Real Reasons You Don't Hear Much From Christopher Mintz-Plasse Anymore

Think of Christopher Mintz-Plasse and the first thing that inevitably springs to mind is McLovin, the lovably dorky teen responsible for the utterly ridiculous, but surprisingly successful, fake ID in Greg Mottola's raunchy 2007 bro comedy "Superbad." But the Californian also appeared in several other box office hits over the following few years.

Indeed, Mintz-Plasse stole the show away from the more experienced Paul Rudd and Seann William Scott as a LARPer in "Role Models," became an unlikely superhero as vigilante sidekick Red Mist in the foul-mouthed caper "Kick-Ass" and graced the "Pitch Perfect" and "How to Train Your Dragon" franchises.

But in recent years, the one-time big screen regular appears to have gone AWOL. From musical endeavors and voiceover roles to matchmaking exploits, not to mention an unexpected mission to Mars (sorta), here's a look at why you don't hear much anymore from one of the late '00s most inescapable faces. 

Okay, so you might have literally heard from Christopher Mintz-Plasse recently but probably without knowing it. For the artist formerly known as McLovin has become an in-demand talent when it comes to the voiceover booth.

In 2016, the Californian joined Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake as leads in "Trolls," playing King Gristle Jr. In the CGI comedy jukebox musical — he also got to belt out its monster hit "Can't Stop the Feeling," too. In-between returning for its sequel five years later, Mintz-Plasse also returned to the "How To Train Your Dragon" franchise, once again voicing Hiccup's enthusiastic pal Fishlegs Ingerman in 2019's "The Hidden World." And in 2021, he put words in the mouths of various animals to comedic effect in ABC's "When Nature Calls with Helen Mirren."

Speaking to LRM Online in 2016, Mintz-Plasse explained why he's become so attracted to the recording booth: "It's really exciting just doing it with your voice. You get to go in a room, and you don't have to worry about what you're wearing or what your face is doing, or hitting your mark or any stuff like that. You just go in and develop these characters with your voice, and I don't know why I keep working in this voiceover business, I guess they just like what I do."

Following in the illustrious footsteps of Dogstar's Keanu Reeves, 30 Odd Foot of Grunts' Russell Crowe and The Pizza Underground's Macaulay Culkin, Christopher Mintz-Plasse is another actor who fancies himself as something of a rock star on the side. And his very first film role gave him the impetus to pursue his musical dreams.

The Californian spent part of his paycheck for "Superbad," the bawdy comedy in which he played uber geek McLovin, on his very first drum kit. And he enjoyed being a sticksman so much he decided to join a band — hard rock outfit The Young Rapscallions. Mintz-Plasse actually played with the group for eight years before they disbanded. But undeterred, the star simply formed another, Bear on Fire (now named Colorvision), this time playing bass alongside former bandmate Nick Chamian and several other childhood pals.

In 2015, Mintz acknowledged to Stereogum that being an actor in a band has both pros and cons. Referring to his stint in The Young Rapscallions, he said, "We hired a booking agent, and we told him not to promote it like, 'It's Christopher Mintz-Plasse' or 'It's McLovin's band,' or anything like that. Behind our backs, he told every venue that McLovin was playing and we'd show up to the venue and there'd be posters of me. That's a hard thing to deal with ... But also, there's more ears. Maybe they'll be like, "Oh, this actor's in this band, I'll give it a listen.'" 

As a single guy, Christopher Mintz-Plasse had the freedom to take whichever roles came his way. But now that he's a happily-attached man his priorities may well have changed. The "Fright Night" star has been dating Britt Bowman, a photographer specializing in live music, since 2017. And five years into their relationship, things got really serious.

Yes, as he proudly boasted on social media in 2022, Mintz-Plasse asked his long-term girlfriend for her hand in marriage. And as the several photos of Bowman flashing her sparkling ring proved, she said yes. It was subsequently revealed that the old romantic proposed on the day before Christmas.

Mintz-Plasse certainly did his homework beforehand. He uploaded a pic to Instagram which showed him rehearsing for the big moment with friend Matthew Koma. Mandy Moore and Alison Brie were just a few of the famous faces who offered their congratulations in the comments section. The pair seemed just as loved up several months later when they were captured on the kiss cam while watching the Boston Celtics take on the Atlanta Hawks.

While you may have seen Christopher Mintz-Plasse enjoying his new-found fame during his "Superbad" years, the star now admits that his rapid launch to the A-list came at a cost. Indeed, in a 2021 interview with Page Six, the actor revealed that the journey from complete unknown to instantly recognizable star majorly impacted his mental health.

"It was very alarming for a 17-year-old person," said Mintz-Plasse. "I was trying to figure out who I was as a human being at the time and then to have millions of people knowing you as McLovin was very intense. It wasn't like I was a working actor that worked my way up to a certain level of fame. It was zero to 100 very fast and I was barely out of high school. When it was happening I think I was young and dumb enough to go along with the ride, but looking back at it now it was very intense."

The Californian also disclosed that he'd suffered several breakdowns during this period but that he'd managed to come through the other side thanks to those he surrounded himself with: "I had a great support system of friends and family, a great agent and manager to help me guide a career that I wanted — but it was intense."

Could the recent lull in Christopher Mintz-Plasse's filmography be a case of karma coming back to bite him? Although his public persona generally appears to be lovable dork, there have been several instances when the Californian's sense of humor has got him into trouble.

In a 2022 Vanity Fair oral history of "Superbad," co-star Jonah Hill admitted that he took an immediate dislike to the man who'd become known as McLovin during the audition stage. And this was a claim backed up by its co-writer, Seth Rogen: "Jonah immediately hated him. He was like, 'That was f***ing with my rhythm. I couldn't perform with that guy.'" Producer Judd Apatow also chimed in, remarking that Mintz-Plasse was "very caustic and attacked Jonah and did improvs insulting Jonah."

Just two years after "Superbad came out, Mintz-Plasse was slapped live on air for being similarly near-the-knuckle. The star was appearing on New York's Fox 5 News (via Perez Hilton) when host Rosanna Scotto referred to the "Superbad" sex scene filmed in front of his mother. The actor replied, "That's not normal? Moms don't sit in on their kids having sex? Come on, you've seen your daughter having sex!"

As well as holding down his own relationship, and now engagement, Christopher Mintz-Plasse has also been busy trying to sort out the love lives of his close friends. And it's fair to say that he's one ambitious matchmaker.

Following Kim Kardashian's split from Kanye West in 2021, Mintz-Plasse told Page Six that he had the perfect rebound in mind for the reality TV star: "Succession" gangly hanger-on Cousin Greg, aka Nicholas Braun. He said, "Going through a divorce is never the best time to go after someone, but I really think ... his height will help him. He's very charming. So, if they ever meet in person, yeah, I think they could hit it off."

Mintz-Plasse, who'd previously proved his credentials by officiating friend Matthew Koma and Hilary Duff's wedding, inspired Braun to make a bid for Kardashian himself. Unfortunately, the Emmy Award nominee, who lived with Mintz-Plasse and Bowman during the early part of the lockdown, was unsuccessful in his audaciousness.

More than 15 years have passed since "Superbad" became one of the '00s defining teen comedies. That's ample enough time for some kind of reboot, remake or reimagining, especially in the current IP-obsessed climate. But if it does happen, one of its biggest stars has no interest in revisiting former glories.

Speaking to Glenn Kalina on 98.1 WOGL, Mintz-Plasse argued that the only way a new "Superbad" could happen was if the central casting was all-female. He said (via IndieWire), "I've heard from some of the people who made the first one, and I don't think they want to touch it. I think they kind of like where it's sitting. And, sometimes if you make a sequel to things, it can kind of damper the first one. I think they just want to let it be ... If there was a way to do it, [a female version] would be the way, for sure.

The Californian, who famously played fake ID creator McLovin in the bawdy comedy, is joined in his stance by Seth Rogen. The "Superbad" co-writer told LADBible the year previously that he would "100 percent probably never touch" the film that further established him as one of his generation's funniest movie stars.

In 2017, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and his longtime friend, special effects artist Ben Bayouth, uploaded a string of 30-second adult puppet comedy shorts to Instagram named "Blark and Son." And the response was so positive that Comedy Central asked the pair to adapt their idea into an entire digital series.

Mintz-Plasse, who voices the Son in the title, told CBS News ahead of its 2018 premiere how proud he was of its homegrown beginnings: "We started it with no budget and no one was making any money from it. I think Ben put $5,000 of his own money in. As it slowly progressed, we brought more of our friends in. We brought one of our friends from high school in to write, direct, edit and make music for it. At the end of the day, we got nine of our friends we've known for 15 years involved and I think it kind of shows in the end product."

"Blark and Son," which explores the relationship between an old-school father and his 12-year-old video game obsessive son, has attracted some pretty impressive names across its two series, too. Indeed, "Scrubs" star Donald Faison and Mintz-Plasse's former "Role Models" castmate Jane Lynch are just a few of the famous faces who have lent their tones to the slightly nightmarish-looking animation.

While Christopher Mintz-Plasse appeared to hit the ground running in his film career — "Superbad" was his very first role — his small screen beginnings were a little stop-start. After a one-off appearance in "Party Down," the Californian was due to take top billing in "Friend Me," a sitcom in which he starred alongside close friend Nicholas Braun. But despite placing a series order, its home network CBS later decided to pass. And it was a similar story with office-based comedy "Sharing" three years later.

Mintz-Plasse looked to have struck TV gold in 2015 when he was chosen to play tech geek Clark Roberts in another CBS original. A battle of the generations comedy about a web-only outdoors magazine, "The Great Indoors" boasted "Community" lead Joel McHale and none other than British national treasure Stephen Fry in its cast. And things started promisingly.

Indeed, airing straight after ratings juggernaut "The Big Bang Theory," the show posted relatively strong numbers for its first few episodes. However, when it was moved to a different time slot, it failed to bring as many viewers and after just a single season "The Great Indoors" went to the great network in the sky.

Christopher Mintz-Plasse built his career on playing lovable nerds in the likes of "Superbad," "Role Models" and "Kick-Ass." So could the fact that he's recently subverted his persona by taking on more unsavory roles have confused audiences?

In 2020, the Californian played Neil, one of several toxic men given a lesson in accountability by Carey Mulligan's vigilante, in "Promising Young Woman." In an interview with Shock Ya!, Mintz-Plasse revealed that one of his real-life bros was taken aback by how heavy the thriller was: "It makes me laugh that there are going to be a lot of men who are going to walk out thinking about their younger selves, or if they're single, how they're going to treat people moving forward. It's pretty brilliant in that respect."

Two years later, Mintz-Plasse once again went over to the dark side when he played Mr. Calvin, a lecherous guidance counselor who takes an all-too-keen interest Angourie Rice's aspiring Harvard student in Paramount+'s well-received coming-of-age "Honor Society."

Although Christopher Mintz-Plasse's own bands The Young Rapscallions and Bear on Fire (now Colorvision) have yet to become regulars on MTV, or whichever channels actually play music videos these days, the Californian has become a familiar face in the music promo world.

The "How to Train Your Dragon" star first appeared in the 2010 video for Kid Cudi featuring Kanye West's "Erase Me" before popping up in the promo for The Soft Pack's "Answer to Yourself." By the end of the decade, Mintz-Plasse had also shown up in the clips for Unknown Mortal Orchestra's "So Good At Being in Trouble," Alison Wonderland's "U Don't Know" and Kodaline's "Ready." And then in 2020, he made a cameo alongside Hilary Duff in the clip for Winnetka Bowling League's "CVS."

In a chat with People, the latter's frontman Matthew Koma, who's married to Duff and BFFs with Mintz-Plasse, revealed how lucky he felt at being able to include his nearest and dearest in his work: "It sort of feels like you pulled a fast one to be on set with your wife and best friend shooting a video where everyone's dressed as CVS employees. Some weird fluorescent dream sequence."

There's another reason why Christopher Mintz-Plasse appears to have been kinda quiet as of late. He's been busy preparing to go into space. Well, kinda. This isn't a William Shatner-joins-NASA mission, although the "Star Trek" icon is involved. No, this is a pretend final frontier created solely for the purpose of Fox's slightly deranged new reality show.

Mintz-Plasse will join 11 other celebrities including "Vanderpump Rules" regular Tom Schwartz, Super Bowl winner Marshawn Lynch and disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong on "Stars on Mars," a series which will simulate the experience of living on the red planet. The famous faces will not only have to spend every waking hour with each other, they will also have to carry out assignments given by Shatner to discover which will be crowned "the brightest star in the galaxy."

For someone who's renowned for playing uber geeks, this is perhaps surprisingly Mintz-Plasse's first foray into science-fiction. But judging by the fetching orange and grey spacesuit he sports in the show's promotional photos, it's a genre that fits him well. Funnily enough, the Californian was asked in 2009 by The Guardian about the possibility of life on Mars. He replied, "I have no idea, I hope so. How can the human race be, like, the only living form in the universe? There have to be other life forms out there. I believe it."

Perhaps the most significant reason why Christopher Mintz-Plasse now appears to be flying under the radar in the Twitter age is that he barely uses it. Yes, the "Superbad" star is unlikely to get involved in any online beefs even if he does have an account to do so.

Mintz-Plasse took a three-year break from tweeting before returning in 2021, partly to celebrate Argentina's defeat of Brazil in the Copa America final and partly to castigate a certain contestant from ABC's second biggest dating show. "I haven't tweeted really anything in four years, but I just need everyone to know Greg from "The Bachelorette" is a gaslighting piece of cuck," the Californian announced out of nowhere.

Since then, Mintz-Plasse has treated his followers to the odd sporadic post, usually to commemorate an anniversary of one of his films. However, he is a little more active on Instagram where he's racked up nearly 300,000 followers.

Christopher Mintz-Plasse didn't even have any professional head shots when he landed the "Superbad" role that turned him into an overnight sensation: the Californian had to take pictures using only his smart phone. Now the actor has enough money to buy his own chain of photographic studios.

Yes, according to Celebrity Net Worth, Mintz-Plasse now has a whopping $8 million in the bank, which may also explain why the star has been able to afford a few more breaks from the film/TV set as of late. But the star is not averse to paying things forward, either.

In 2015, Mintz-Plasse joined Seth Rogen to provide a live commentary on a screening of "Superbad" at the University of Vermont. The institution's Alpha Chi Omega and Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternities had beaten dozens of other college student organizations across America for the prize having raised the most money for the Alzheimer's Association. Five years later, the same duo and several other former castmates also helped to bring in $200,000 for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin when they took part in a "Superbad" reunion and watch party.