Remember Mandella From 10 Things I Hate About You? She's Stunning In Rare Snaps Decades Later

Few movies hit millennials right in the heart like "10 Things I Hate About You," the late '90s teen rom-com with an 'it-was-a-game-but-now-I'm-really-in-love' plot. Remember Mandella, the Shakespeare-obsessed best friend of Kat, the character portrayed by Julia Stiles (who has had a gorgeous transformation over the years)? Well, Mandella was played by Susan May Pratt, and we've got a couple of stunning snaps of the actor decades after the beloved movie, proving she was always more than just a sidekick.

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Pratt's character and her love of Shakespeare were an oft-missed nod to the movie's core story being a loose, modern retelling of the playwright's "The Taming of the Shrew." And while Mandella's Elizabethan-inspired prom dress isn't generally considered one of the most iconic rom-com outfits ever, we'd argue that the look is both gorgeous and thematically savvy. "10 Things I Hate About You" was released in 1999, and besides the fun Y2K fashion, Pratt and the rest of the cast infused their own unique energy into the cherished characters that will forever live in the cultural zeitgeist. In fact, Pratt isn't the only cast member we're obsessed with, as Larisa Oleynik, who played Bianca in "10 Things I Hate About You," also still looks great today.

Susan May Pratt was born in East Lansing, Michigan, and had only nabbed a few acting roles before starring in "10 Things I Hate About You." One was an episode of "Law & Order," which is practically a rite of passage for up-and-coming actors. Pratt also acted in "Drive Me Crazy," starring Melissa Joan Hart, which was released the same year as "10 Things." Into the early 2000s and beyond, Pratt racked up credits for a host of other television and film projects, including "Open Water 2: Adrift" and "Searching for Paradise," for which she won Best Actress at the 2002 Milano International Film Festival. Pratt also starred in "The Gift," a 2015 psychological thriller starring Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall.

In the years since her iconic role as Mandella in "10 Things," Pratt has kept a fairly low profile, mostly skipping red carpets and glitzy Hollywood affairs. A notable exception came in April 2019 at a musical parody performance of "10 Things" in Los Angeles, where she was photographed rocking jeans, a rainbow sweater, and a cool leather jacket, with her signature brunette locks left loose. Serendipitous, because nearly 30 years after the film's release, an official Broadway musical adaptation of "10 Things" is in the works, with Lena Dunham and Carly Rae Jepsen heading up the project. Performances are scheduled to start in August 2027.