What Are These 2000s TV Stars Up To Now?

Friends, Frasier, Entourage, Gilmore Girls—these television shows dominated the airwaves in the 2000s. Each week millions of viewers tuned in to watch some of the most well-known stars in Hollywood at the time transform into their favorite characters. Although it’s been over twenty years since the start of the millennium (where did the time go?), these early 2000s actors are still busy at work. Here’s what they’re up to today.

Jennifer Aniston

One of the most famous TV actors of the early 2000s, Jennifer Aniston starred in the hit sitcom Friends alongside other big names like Courteney Cox and David Schwimmer. In recent years, the actress produced and starred alongside Reese Witherspoon in the Apple TV+ television drama series, The Morning Show. She also reunited with her fellow Friends cast members in 2021 for an HBO special, Friends: The Reunion.

Eva Longoria

In the early 2000s, Longoria starred alongside Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, and Teri Hatcher in the widely successful ABC drama series Desperate Housewives. Expect to see more of the actress on your television screen soon—she is set to be the host and executive producer of the new CNN program Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico.

Tony Shaloub

If you’re wondering why Abe Weissman (aka Midge’s dad) from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel looks so familiar, it’s because the actor, Tony Shalhoub, also played the title role in Monk. Monk, which follows Shalhoub’s character after he has a nervous breakdown, premiered over two decades ago on the USA Network.

Ray Romano

Ray Romano, who may be most known for his award-winning television series, Everybody Loves Raymond, had a role in Martin Scorsese’s 2020 film, The Irishman. He also has an upcoming movie he wrote, directed, and starred in, called Somewhere in Queens, set to release this year.

Courteney Cox

Another Friends alum, Courteney Cox (better known as Monica Gellar), has also had a busy few years—in 2020, she guest starred on Modern Family, and in 2022 she starred in Scream 5.

Debra Messing

Debra Messing, who played Grace in the incredibly successful television series Will & Grace, recently reprised her role in the Will & Grace reboot. But that’s not all she’s been up to. Over the last decade, she’s starred on Broadway, had a role in the television remake of Dirty Dancing, and acted in Frank Whaley's drama film Like Sunday, Like Rain.

Sean Hayes

Messing’s Will & Grace castmate, Sean Hayes, also has been busy since starring in the hit series. In 2020, he joined forces with Will Arnett and Jason Bateman to launch a podcast called SmartLess, and in 2022 he acted in Good Night, Oscar on Broadway.

Kelsey Grammer

For over a decade, Kelsey Grammer played the role of Dr. Frasier Crane, a Boston psychiatrist who relocated to Seattle for a fresh start. Frasier fans will be excited to hear that in 2021 it was announced that the popular television show would return to the screen with new episodes.

Leah Remini

Leah Remini, who played the hilarious Carrie Heffernan on King of Queens, recently was a guest panelist on The Masked Singer, a judge on So You Think You Can Dance, and acted alongside her King of Queens costar, Kevin James, in Kevin Can Wait.

David Duchovny

After X-Files, David Duchovny starred in Californication, published five books, reprised his role as Mulder in the show’s reboot, and even started a band. Talk about being busy.

Alexis Bledel

Alexis Bledel played Rory for seven seasons in the hit show Gilmore Girls. In recent years, the actress has appeared in The Handmaid’s Tale.

Gillian Anderson

Gillian Anderson, famously known for her role as Special Agent Dana Scully in X-Files, has had a whirlwind last few years. For starters, she acted in The Crown as Margaret Thatcher and starred in the Hulu series The Great. In early 2019 she took on the role of sex therapist, Dr. Jean Milburn, in the Netflix drama-comedy Sex Education. She also recently announced her latest project, Scoop, a movie centered around Prince Andrew’s infamous Newsnight interview that aired in 2019.

Adrian Grenier

Almost two decades ago, Adrian Grenier appeared on-screen as Vincent Chase in Entourage. Today, in addition to acting, he also focuses on his award-winning nonprofit, Lonely Whale.

Blake Lively

Gossip Girl star Blake Lively has a lot of projects in the works. In 2022, it was announced that the actress would be making her directorial debut with Seconds, a film based on the novel by Bryan Lee O’Malley. A year later Lively shared that she would star in the lead role in the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel, It Ends With Us.

Rachel Bilson

A couple of years ago, The O.C.’s Rachel Bilson started a podcast called Welcome to the O.C., Bitches! with her O.C. cast mate, Melinda Clarke. So far, fellow O.C. stars, including Adam Brody, Mischa Barton, and Peter Gallagher, have all appeared on the podcast.

America Ferrera

Ugly Betty’s America Ferrera announced in 2021 that she would be making her feature-length directorial debut with I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, a film based on the novel by Erika L. Sanchez. She also co-produced and co-starred in the NBC workplace comedy, Superstore from 2015 to 2021, and has a role in the upcoming Barbie movie directed by Greta Gerwig.

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