How the Lives of the Main Cast of 'National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation' Evolved in over Three Decades

• The Griswold family gave viewers a rib-cracking comedy film in "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation."
• The cast of the popular holiday movie showcased their brilliance on screen while attempting to have an epic Christmas holiday.
• Here is an overview of the main cast's lives 34 years after "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" was released.

Over 30 years ago, the Griswold family took viewers into their celebrations of the holidays in the hit comedy "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation." The movie gave a glowingly goofy homage to family holidays.

The cast of the film, including Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Juliette Lewis, and Johnny Galecki, showed the audience how family plans for a big Christmas can turn into a huge disaster. The humor the cast brought on the screens has made the movie become a timeless comedy over the years.

The comedy film, released in 1989, shows Clark Griswold, played by Chase, preparing his family for an epic seasonal celebration. However, things don't run without hiccups for Clark, his wife Ellen Griswold, played by D'Angelo and their two kids, Audrey Griswold and Rusty Griswold. Lewis played Audrey, while Galecki was cast as Rusty.

Chase may have also missed out on opportunities to continue with his acting career because he moved from Hollywood.

The cast aced their roles in the movie that a featured review referred to it as "one of the funniest Christmas comedies" that is "definitely worth watching every holiday season." Here is a look at what the cast has been up to after putting out such a magnificent movie and cracking viewers' ribs with their continual bad luck and relentless attempt to have a glorious Christmas.

Chevy Chase

Chevy Chase was one of the founders of "Saturday Night Live." However, when he appeared in the show in 2015, he was depressed, drinking too much, and had gained weight. People asked whether the actor was okay. Three years later, he became sober and had lost 40 pounds.

As much as he was no longer drinking and had lost weight, Chase's career had gone cold. He mostly sat at home, waiting for a script to come his way, but none did. The actor was ready to work, but he generally ended up getting caught in bad press rather than a promising pitch.

For instance, he criticized "Saturday Night Live," calling their modern humor bleak. When he was reminded that millions of viewers still view the show, he argued that the current generation was merely listening and laughing at the worst humor in the world.

Even with these remarks, Chase wondered why he couldn't get a break in film. The actor had an excellent working record as he was known for revolutionizing television in the 1970s and being the first breakout star on NBC's "Saturday Night Live."

D'Angelo and Pacino lived together for seven years before parting ways.

Aside from "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," Chase made two other best comedies of the 1980s, including "Caddyshack" and "Fletch." In 2012, he also earned positive reviews for his turn on the show, "Community."

Chase's disastrous late-night TV talk show on FOX in 1983, which went on for 29 episodes and got an F grade from Entertainment Weekly, may have contributed to his career dry spell.

While the actor pointed out that show business was already going for the likes of George Clooney and actors his age, he insisted that he still looked good in his early 70s and wondered why the industry wouldn't let him do a Chevy Chase picture.

Chase may have also missed out on opportunities to continue with his acting career because he moved from Hollywood to a quiet town in New York in the mid-90s to stay with his wife, Jayni. In 2019, he shared a throwback picture of them on their wedding day on June 19, 1982.

Chase and his wife raised their daughters Cydney, Caley, and Emily in the quiet town of New York. The actor also has a son, Bryan, from a previous relationship. His daughter Cydney is a singer and songwriter.

The "Three Amigos" actor went through a health crisis in 2021. He opened up about it on February 2022 on CBS Sunday Morning, revealing that he had a near-fatal heart failure that saw him admitted to a hospital for five weeks. After he was discharged, he got to recoup at his home in Westchester. Chase said he wouldn't be going anywhere as he was happy to be back home with family amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

The actor's latest public appearance was on December 3, 2023, when he attended the grand opening of the Rocky Shop in Philadelphia. He was photographed in a wheelchair.

Chase now spends his time reading and watching the TV for news and new productions. However, he insists actors, directors, producers, and comedians are not releasing anything significant anymore. As per the actor, today's humor is giving people worse stuff than they already have in their own lives.

Beverly D'Angelo

Beverly D'Angelo had an eventful professional and personal life after "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation." She landed strong roles in films such as "The Miracle" in 1981 and "American History X" in 1998. The actress also starred in "Pterodactyl Woman from Beverly Hills" and worked as its associate producer.

She went on to appear in other films, including "Illuminata" in 1998, "Black Water Transit" in 2009, and "Dreamland" in 2016. The actress also ventured into TV, where she thrived. Her role in 1994's "Menendez: A Killing in Beverly Hills," earned her an Emmy nomination.

D'Angelo also performed exceptionally on Prime Time TV, where she had recurring roles on 1999's "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit" in 1999, "Entourage" in 2004, "Shooter" in 2016, and "Insatiable" in 2018.

The "Bounty Killer" actress's career became secondary when she welcomed twins Olivia and Anton in 2001 with her ex-partner Al Pacino. In May 2023, she opened up about how she met the veteran actor.

The two were on the same plane from Los Angeles to New York when they first crossed paths in 1996. Pacino was seated in front of her, so he asked her to sit with him. D'Angelo narrated on a video on Instagram that by the time the plane landed, "it was on."

D'Angelo and Pacino lived together for seven years before parting ways. During their time together, the actor asked D'Angelo to be the mother of his children. "Although I'd avoided that role my whole life, I was deeply in love and I was 100 percent in," she admitted.

The pair resorted to in-vitro fertilization in 1997. Eventually, D'Angelo got pregnant at 48 and welcomed now 22-year-old twins Olivia and Anton in 2001, just six weeks after she turned 49.

Two years later, D'Angelo and Pacino parted ways and were caught up in a bitter custody battle. They soon resolved their issues, left the drama behind, and started a new journey, which the actress referred to as a "deeper kind of intimacy, honesty and acceptance than a 'traditional' relationship would have allowed."

The most important thing D'Angelo learned from the experience was acceptance. The actress accepted that she couldn't change another person, which allowed her to move forward to a new relationship of co-parenting with Pacino.

As much as the duo parted ways, they remained intertwined as a family, co-parenting their children. D'Angelo and Pacino now have a unique and profound friendship that has seen them interconnected for 27 years through thick and thin. She explained:

"The power of our love for our children was the basis for resolving our conflicts and creating a new history as coparents."

Today, the actress' kids are all grown up. She still dotes on them but spends her other moments lighting up the screens. She starred in "The Unicorn" in 2019, and "Violent Night" and "The Good House" in 2022. She also appears on podcasts and TV shows, of which she shares updates on her Instagram.

Juliette Lewis

Juliette Lewis is a talented and versatile actor whose performance as Danielle Bowden on 1991's "Cape Fear" earned her an Oscar nomination. The actress portrayed other diverse roles since starring in "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation."

Some of Lewis' famous credits are "Husbands and Wives," in 1992, "Natural Born Killers" in 1994, "Starsky & Hutch" in 2004, "Whip It" in 2009, and Showtime's "My Louisiana Sky" in 2001, which secured her an Emmy nomination.

From the start of 2004, Lewis took a break from acting to pursue a music career. Her band "Juliette & the Licks," released two full-length albums and went on numerous high-profile tours and festival gigs for seven years before the singer set out on a solo career. She also explained her shift to music:

"I've never really cared if I was famous for my music. It was just something I had to do."

In her solo career, she released her album "Terra Incognita" in 2009, which saw her tour the world, including Canada, Japan, Europe, Turkey, and North America. After a five-year break from acting, she returned to the scene and starred in the romantic comedy "The Switch" in 2010, alongside Jennifer Aniston.

Meyer and Galecki were first speculated to be dating when they traveled together to Tahiti Beach in the Bahamas.

During this time, the actress's love life was also progressing. Lewis, who dated Brad Pitt in high school for four years, has been married once. She and Steve Berra, an American professional skateboarder and director, tied the knot in 1999 and divorced in 2003. The actress explained that they got married during the illusionist period, just after they learned that they liked each other:

"He was a workhorse. Everything was work-related, and he found it difficult to be in a marriage (…). We're best friends now. It's like a family relationship. We always check how we are."

In 2010, the actress said she had not given up on romance and would get married again if she was inspired to. She also confessed her yearning for motherhood, noting that the chances of her being a mom would be high if she were in a loving relationship.

To date, Lewis hasn't gotten married again or had kids, but her professional life still keeps her busy. She has starred in the thriller series "Yellowjackets" seasons one and two, and it has already been renewed for season three. The actress also features in "The Thicket," released in 2023, alongside Peter Dinklage.

The 50-year-old has upcoming projects, which she said she is looking forward to and will reflect her personality. She is excited to have entered her 50s, which came with a lot of reflection, physical changes, and emotional growth that she is leaning into. Lewis, who shares her pictures on Instagram, is still a thriving, stunning, successful, and flexible woman in her midlife.

Johnny Galecki

After Johnny Galecki starred in "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," he became best known for his role as Leonard Hofstadter in "Big Bang Theory." The popular comedy series ran from 2007 to 2019, after which he appeared on "Behind the Brand" to answer questions host Bryan Elliot asked.

The actor divulged that the one thing he cannot live without is conversation. Galecki is also bad at math and is willing to trade jobs with a journalist for a week. The fun questions also revealed that the actor would like to have drinks with Thomas Jefferson.

Galecki's favorite color is purple, and he loves visiting Paris. He used three words—thoughtful, considerate, and empathetic—to describe himself. The actor, who is afraid of loneliness, is also a father. He and the mother of his child, Alaina Meyer, started dating in 2018.

Meyer and Galecki were first speculated to be dating when they traveled together to Tahiti Beach in the Bahamas in August 2018. They didn't tag each other in pictures during their stay, but the actor posted a photo of himself hugging a woman with a thigh tattoo on the beach.

The duo went public with their relationship in September 2019 when they shared an Instagram picture of a night out together. They made their awards show debut in October 2018 at the E! People's Choice Awards.

Just a month later, people speculated that the pair were married after they were spotted wearing rings. However, Meyer squashed the rumor when she shared a picture of her and Galecki captioned, "#notmarried."

In May 2019, Meyer shared a cute picture of her and Galecki sprinkled in blue paint, announcing that they were expecting a baby boy. The pair announced the arrival of their son, Avery, in December 2019. Galecki shared a photo of the newborn's hands on Instagram and captioned it:

"With full and grateful hearts we welcome our beautiful son into this incredible world. Thank you for all of your love and support. ❤️❤️❤️."

Unfortunately, Meyer and Galecki parted ways just a month before their son turned one. A source said the two broke up in November 2020 but continue to co-parent their child. Apart from his personal life, Galecki has not been active in the acting industry for a while after "The Big Bang Theory" ended.

Chase, D'Angelo, Lewis, and Galecki, who went on to have several personal and professional milestones after "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," reunited on December 12, 2019, in Beverly Hills, California, for the 30th anniversary screening of the holiday movie. The Griswold family looked happy and excited to see each other again.