Shannon Elizabeth is taking control.

More than two decades ago, Elizabeth, 52, starred in American Pie, the 1999 raunchy comedy that followed a group of high school friends on a mission to lose their virginity before graduation, as the beautiful foreign exchange student Nadia.

Nadia quickly became one of the movie’s most talked-about characters. And while audiences remember her as bold and mysterious, Elizabeth told Entertainment Tonight in March that she is quite different from her character.

“For me, it was a role, it was playing a character,” the actress told the outlet. “But even in my real life, I’m just not the girl who likes to be naked, ever.”

“Even at home I’m always covered up,” she explained. “Like I have friends that sleep in the nude and they don’t mind walking around that way. That was never me, but because that was kind of my coming out, everyone assumed I was that girl.”

Now, Elizabeth is ready to take control of her own story as she launches her OnlyFans account.

“I’ve spent my entire career working in Hollywood, where other people controlled the narrative and the outcome of my career. This new chapter is about changing that, showing off a more sexy side no one has seen, and being closer to my fans,” Elizabeth tells PEOPLE on why she decided to join the provocative social media platform.

“I’m choosing OnlyFans because it allows me to connect directly with my audience, create on my own terms, and just be free. I really do think this is the future,” she continues.

Fans can subscribe to her page starting Thursday, April 16.

Elizabeth also told Entertainment Tonight she is grateful for her role in the comedy franchise, saying, “Everything I’ve done in my life is because of American Pie.”

Following the comedy’s success, Elizabeth went on to appear in popular early-2000s titles including Scary Movie (2000), Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001), Thirteen Ghosts (2001) and Love Actually (2003).