READ THIS NEXT: See ’90s Teen Idol Rider Strong Now at 42. After helping Stiles’ Sara achieve her dance dreams in Save the Last Dance, Thomas moved on to more major film roles, including in some hit franchises. In 2002, he appeared in both Halloween: Resurrection and the first Barbershop. Other roles in that decade include Barbershop 2: Back in Business, The Fountain, and the TV movie version of A Raisin in the Sun starring Sean Combs. In the 2010s, he appeared in the third movie of the Barbershop trilogy and a handful of television films, among other projects. Thomas’ most recent film credits include 2021’s Oscar-nominated The Tragedy of Macbeth. READ THIS NEXT: Former Teen Idol Says She “Was Living a Double Life.” Thomas also has a lengthy TV resume, which includes main cast roles in The District (2000-2004) and Vixen (2015-2016), as well as guest spots and recurring roles on some long-running and influential shows. Among them are New York Undercover, Reaper, Army Wives, Bones, Criminal Minds, Madam Secretary, The Good Fight, and Insecure. Thomas has been married to fellow actor Aonika Laurent, who’s appeared in Fantastic Four and Olympus Has Fallen, since 2006. The pair’s first meeting was almost a disaster, as they shared during an interview for OWN’s Black Love documentary series, since Thomas was on the phone trying to give directions to a friend when he was introduced to Laurent at a party. “I think she felt blown off, but I was really just focused on something else at the moment,” he explained. Fortunately, she gave him another shot, and since they’ve been married, the couple have welcomed two children: Lola Jolie, born in 2008, and Luc Laurent, born in 2010. Last month, Laurent shared a photo of Thomas with their two kids to honor him on Father’s Day. “Happy Father’s Day @seanpthomas,” the caption reads. “You are the best of the best! I’m eternally grateful for the way you father and love our children. Thank you for taking us with you on this magical ride! We love you!“ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb For more celebrity updates sent right to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. In 2021, Stiles and Thomas celebrated the 20th anniversary of Save the Last Dance by doing a virtual reunion to reminisce about the movie. As much fun as they had making it, neither star had predicted that they’d be discussing their teen dance drama two decades after it was released. “I never ever would have expected that, for people to be talking about it 20 years later,” Thomas told Entertainment Tonight. He also noted that fans of the movie have told him that it normalized interracial relationships for them. Stiles said that she remains really proud of Save the Last Dance for addressing prejudice and other racial issues and that it helped her “open [her] eyes” to her own privilege as a white woman.
