SERVING fans a hilarious slice of small-town American life, My Name Is Earl was a smash hit when it burst on to our TV screens nearly two decades ago.
Running from 2005 to 2009, the sitcom saw small-time thief Earl Hickey – played by Jason Lee – make a list of every bad thing he had ever done in an attempt to right wrongs and earn some good karma.
Ethan Suplee has shed more than 21 stone after deciding to overhaul his health
The Noughties sitcom was a huge hit, but it only ran for four series
By his side was Ethan Suplee as Randy, the protagonist’s dim-witted brother who lazed his way through life in the fictional town of Camden.
Shortly before being cast in My Name Is Earl, Ethan, 47, had got sober after using drink and drugs to numb the pain of being put on diets regularly to try to control his weight.
Now the actor is a world away from his character, having shed 21 stone and dropping to nine per cent body fat.
“I cannot say that actually losing weight has made me happier. I don’t think that’s true,” he told PEOPLE last year. “I just think that achieving something I set out to achieve has given me this volume of happiness that is pretty great.”
Ethan took to social media to share throwback snaps when he was at his heaviest
Since the series ended after just four seasons, he has continued to pick up work in Hollywood, appearing in blockbusters including The Wolf of Wall Street and Babylon.
Here, we take a look at how his fellow cast members have fared.
Jason Lee – Earl Hickey
Jason has taken a step back from Hollywood in recent years
Comedian Jason, 53, portrayed petty criminal Earl, who attempts to get good karma by making things right with people he has wronged in the past.
Before landing the role, he had broken through as an actor in Kevin Smith’s 1995 cult indie hit Mallrats, after switching from an early career as a professional skateboarder.
Jason found further fame by playing Dave in all three live-action versions of Alvin and the Chipmunks. He also appeared in American Dad!, Raising Hope and We Bare Bears.
In recent years, he’s taken a break from Hollywood after moving to a small town in Texas with his wife Ceren Alkaç, their three children, and a son from a previous relationship. He now focuses on photography.
Jason also revealed he had left the Church of Scientology in 2016 after being a member since the 1990s.
Jason told The Guardian: “Everybody wants answers, everybody wants to feel less depressed or less anxious, or they want to try to understand some issue that they might have with themselves.”
His first wife, photographer Carmen Llywelyn, blamed the church for their split and claimed Jason divorced her because she read a book that criticised Scientology.
Carmen claimed she told her talent manger and fellow members of the church that she had read A Piece of Blue Sky, and that shortly after that she received a “disconnection letter” from Jason.
A spokesperson for the Church of Scientology told The Independent: “This is yet another in a long series of shameless and transparent attempts by Ms Llywelyn to get attention by exploiting her former Church.
“The Church of Scientology has had nothing to do with her for years, and had no involvement in her relationship with her former husband.”
Jaime Pressly – Joy Turner
Jamie has had a turbulent personal life with a marriage breakdown and legal troubles
Jamie, 45, starred as Earl’s scheming ex-wife Joy, who did her best to sabotage his attempts to atone. Her performance netted her an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
The sitcom launched her career and landed her a host of other acting gigs, including a long-running role as Jill Kendall in the CBS sitcom Mom.
She married lawyer Simran Singh the same year as My Name Is Earl ended, but just sixteen months later, the couple had split and Jaime had filed for divorce.
A friend told Us magazine: “I think it comes down to she married this guy too fast.”
Two weeks before filing for divorce, the actress was arrested in Santa Monica, California, under suspicion of driving under the influence. She pleaded no contest and received three years of informal probation.
At the time, she was also facing a $637,000 bill for unpaid taxes as both the IRS and the state of California filed against her.
Jamie has three children: her eldest son from a relationship with DJ Eric Calvo, and her twins with long-term partner Hamzi Hijazi.
She has opened up about having to have part of her breasts removed, having found lumps four years after struggling with mastitis following the birth of her first child.
The actress said: “From just the scar tissue – the mastitis because it mutated into something else, because it sat dormant for a while. It was the craziest thing. Thank God it wasn’t [cancer].”
Eddie Steeples – Darnell Turner
Eddie has been in films with A-list stars since the series ended
Eddie, 49, appeared as Darnell, aka. Crab Man, a mutual friend of Earl and Joy, who he marries in the first series.
He joined former co-star Jason in the fourth instalment of Alvin and the Chipmunks and in 2020 worked with Nicolas Cage on martial arts film Jiu Jitsu.
In 2004, Eddie was on holiday in Thailand when the deadly tsunami struck on Boxing Day, and it was initially feared he had been killed.
His family confirmed he was alive on New Year’s Day 2005, explaining that he had been in a remote mountain area. Eddie has not publicly spoken about it.
Nadine Velazquez – Catalina
Nadine has been a judge for Miss USA pageants
Nadine, 44, appeared in the show as hotel worker Catalina, who eventually marries Randy for a green card.
While it remains her biggest role to date, she has kept acting and appeared in TV shows including Scrubs, Hart of Dixie and most recently ABC’s musical drama Queens.
In 2005, she married talent producer Marc Provissier. Sadly, they divorced after six years in 2011.
Nadine was previously ranked number 39 on Maxim’s annual Hot 100 list. In 2008, she was a judge for Miss USA and a year later hosted the 2009 pageant.
She has also briefly addressed the #MeToo issues in Hollywood, telling the Chicago Tribune: “I don’t have an entertainment industry story that is as severe as some … but I’ve had my share of run-ins or potential situations that would make me incredibly uncomfortable.”
Dale Dickey – Patty
Dale has gone on star in indie films and work with Jennifer Lawrence
Dale, 61, appeared in the show as daytime prostitute Patty, who was frequently arrested across the sitcom’s four series.
The actress was already established in the industry for her character work and has continued to regularly work in film and TV since.
She’s appeared in Iron Man 3 alongside Robert Downey Jr, filmed two episodes of Breaking Bad, and is set to appear in Western Film Horizon.
Dale also worked with a young Jennifer Lawrence on 2010’s Winter’s Bone, winning an Indie Spirit award for Best Supporting Female.
She told Vanity Fair: “I learned a lot from that young lady. She’s raw talent at its best and a good human being.”
Noah Crawford – Young Earl
Noah’s first job was playing Young Earl in the hit Noughties sitcom
Noah had his first big acting job in My Name is Earl, playing the young version of the sitcom’s main character.
The actor, 28, was just 11 years old when he appeared in the pilot back in 2005.
Since the show ended, he appeared in a number of other TV shows including How To Rock, Criminal Minds and Swindle.
Since 2019 he hasn’t appeared in any film or TV roles.
In February this year, he proposed to his girlfriend Hayley Ogas, 30, who also acted in How To Rock.
Billy Gardell – Jeff/Billy Hoyne
Billy had a gastric bypass to lose 68 kg, which meant he no longer had diabetes
Billy, 53, played law enforcement officer Jeff and his identical twin brother Billy, who works in an appliance store with Earl.
After the series ended, he landed his biggest role to date as Mike in Mike & Molly opposite Melissa McCarthy. The series ran until 2016.
He is currently starring in CBS sitcom, Bob Hearts Abishola.
In 2022, he revealed that he had lost 68kg, which meant that he was no longer diabetic.
He told People: “No diabetes, resting heartbeat went from 113 to 68. Walking around pretty healthy these days.
In 2021, he had a gastric bypass operation. It was his third attempt after he backed out of the previous two due to fear.
He has one son, William, with wife Patty Knight, and claims his weight loss has enabled him to have a better relationship with them both.
“I’ve been an example in a lot of good ways for my child, but I feel like it wasn’t a good example of health for him,” the actor said.
“And so I want him to see that it doesn’t matter what age you are. If you are willing to do something a day at a time, you can change anything. That’s the message I wanted him to get.”
