Where Are They Now: Snakkle Catches Up with the Cast of Napoleon Dynamite Before The New Animated Series Premiere!

Efren Ramirez steals the show as Pedro, the transfer student from Juárez, Mexico, who decides to run for class president against popular Summer Wheatley. Why should you vote for him? As Napoleon tells his best friend, “Well, you have a sweet bike. And you're really good at hooking up with chicks. Plus, you're like the only guy at school who has a mustache.” Point taken.

A lifelong actor, Ramirez chose Napoleon Dynamite over the big-budgeted 2004 film The Alamo. Since then, he has appeared on the small screen on shows such as Scrubs, American Dad!, MADtv, and Eastbound and Down. He will return to the big screen in 2012 in Will Ferrell’s Casa de Mi Padre.

“Napoleon, let go of me! I think you're bruisin' my neck meat!” says Kip, older brother, Internet aficionado, and martial arts enthusiast. But Aaron Ruell’s Kip is more than a 32-year-old unemployed man with a love of technology and time travel. He is the devoted soul mate of Lafawnduh, a Detroit native he met online.

Aaron Ruell first arrived in Hollywood as a still photographer who directed the title sequence for Napoleon Dynamite. His first on-screen role was as Kip, the older brother of Napoleon who is certain he is an amazing catch to the women he spends hours with online. Since his role as Kip, Ruell has appeared in feature films such as 2006’s Think Tank and 2007’s On the Road with Judas.

Deidrich Bader stars as Rex of the Rex Kwan Do self-defense system, where one can learn how to defend himself with the strength of a grizzly, the reflexes of a puma, and the wisdom of a man. He was also the source of Kip’s hopes to become an extreme martial artist, which sadly go unfulfilled.

Bader is another well-known veteran actor who lent his talents to this cult classic. A frequent player on television in both animated and live-action series, Bader has appeared on The Drew Carey Show and lent his voice to Kim Possible, Phineas and Ferb, and Kung Fu Panda. Bader’s most recently work includes a spot on Psych, as well as a role in the upcoming film Sassy Pants.

“I could wrap you in some foam, or something billowy?” As Deb, the feminine icon of Napoleon, Tina Majorino brings us a new awareness of glamour shots and side ponytails. Will Deb and Napoleon ever realize their awkward teen love? Or will Pedro steal her heart and homemade key chain kit? Luckily, a mutual love of tetherball helps seal the deal for Deb and Napoleon.

Probably the most recognizable face from Napoleon Dynamite, viewers would have remembered Majorino as “that girl who survived Waterworld,” Kevin Costner’s 1995 apocalyptic flop. Majorino, a child actor with roles in Corrina Corrina and Andre, transitioned into television as she aged, taking on Veronica Mars and Big Love. Most recently, Majorino has appeared on TV’s Bones and Castle. Snakkle caught up with Majorino at the Fox TCA party where she was promoting the animated Dynamite. When asked if she knew the cast had lightning in a bottle back when the were shooting the movie, Majorino said, "That was probably one of the best experiences that I’ve ever had because Jared [Hess, the creator] knew what he wanted from day one and communicated it so that all of us could come together and help him make his project. I don’t think anyone had any motives behind doing it besides loving the script. And they wanted to be there and wanted to be a part of Jared’s vision. And I think that’s what helped make it lightning in a bottle." Majorino ended by saying, "We weren’t trying to be funny, we weren’t trying to make a Hollywood hit, we were doing something that we all believed in."

“If you vote for me, it will be summer all year round,” says Haylie Duff as Summer Wheatly, the most popular girl in school. Unfortunately for Summer, promises of glitter Bonne Bell lip gloss dispensers in the girls’ bathroom and new cheerleading uniforms aren’t enough to tip the scales in her race for class president against Pedro. Ultimately, she is undone by Napoleon’s grooving to Jamiroquai and Pedro’s wistful mustache.

Haylie Duff, sister to Hillary, left her lost class presidency behind to build up a solid showing on TV, including roles on 7th Heaven and Joan of Arcadia. Today, she is as busy as ever. In 2011, Duff appeared in three productions, and she already has four slated for 2012, including the feature film Spin, in which she plays a rich heiress on the run from a homicidal maniac. Maybe things haven’t gone so well for Summer Wheatly after all.…

“How much you wanna make a bet I can throw a football over them mountains?” asks Jon Gries as Uncle Rico, he of the orange van and dashed dreams of high school glory. After Grandma Dynamite injures her coccyx four-wheeling, Uncle Rico shows up to babysit Napoleon and 32-year-old brother Kip. He makes life hell for Napoleon, badgering his classmates to buy herbal breast enhancements while insulting the bosoms of the fair Deb.

Jon Gries has been busy since he threw his last football at a camcorder. The veteran actor, who has worked as a child since the late 1960s, made appearances on such iconic shows as The Jeffersons and Beverly Hills, 90210. Recently, he has appeared on Lost, Sons of Anarchy, and Hawaii Five-0 and films such as Taken. He'll soon appear in the feature film Thicker alongside Guy Pearce and Alison Pill.

Just who is mysterious Grandma Dynamite? We first meet the Dynamite matriarch after she has injured her coccyx in an unfortunate off-roading accident with her equally mysterious lady friends. She engages Uncle Rico to “babysit” her grown grandsons, setting in motion our story. But does her heart really lie with the Dynamite progeny? Or is it with Tina, her fussy llama?

Sandy Martin is another longtime Hollywood player who lent her talents to Napoleon Dynamite. A veteran of the big and small screens, she has most recently appeared on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Weeds, Big Love, and more. She is set to be seen on the big screen in Seventh Psychopaths with Colin Farrell and Woody Harrelson.

“Sorry I'm late. I just got done taming a wild honeymoon stallion for you guys,” says Napoleon as he rides up to his brother’s wedding. And so is the penultimate moment in the film of a young man in Idaho who enjoys groove dancing, drawing ligers, and wooing sensitive Deb with spontaneous games of tetherball. Napoleon was Jon Heder’s breakout role, launching the actor into mainstream big-budgeted fare such as 2005’s Just Like Heaven and 2007’s Blades of Glory. He followed up with several appearances on television, including a spot on My Name Is Earl.

Today, Heder is seen in both TV and film. What’s next for the actor? Besides returning as an animated Napoleon for Fox, he is slated to star as Gulliver Quinn in a 2012 TV movie of the same name, detailing the life of a grown man who enrolls in seventh grade after his family returns from a 15-year research trip.