Having previously appeared in the 1996 holiday feature "Jingle All the Way" Van Wormer kept busy with work as narrator of the animated series "The 3 Friends & Jerry Show" (Fox Family Channel, 1998-99), and a guest role on the CBS law enforcement family drama series "Turks" (1999). He reteamed with director Boyum on the surfing-themed Disney Channel TV-movie "Johnny Tsunami" (also 1999) and next played the young protege-turned-evil nemesis of fictional stuntman Super Dave Osbourne in the 2000 direct-to-video comedy "The Extreme Adventures of Super Dave".
The 2000 Sundance Film Festival featured "Groove", which starred Van Wormer and was warmly received by attendees and subsequently purchased by Sony Pictures. Following the progress of an underground rave in the San Francisco Bay Area, "Groove" was an accurate and affectionate fictionalized portrayal of the scene, and won credibility points from ravers and raves from audiences. Van Wormer portrayed rave organizer Ernie, a committed and quick-thinking young man whose skills, proven through his setup of the party and handling of unforeseen problems, would rival those of million dollar concert promoters.
Van Wormer himself proved comparably enterprising, co-founding, co-writing and co-starring in the Michigan State University sitcom "The Show", entirely produced by MSU media students. He worked on the series from its 1988 debut to his graduation in 1991, but the Student Emmy-winning "The Show" continued on through the 1990s. Upon graduation, Van Wormer relocated to Los Angeles, where he joined The Groundlings' improvisational school and formed the sketch comedy group Caustic Casserole. In the mid-1990s, he got his professional start, with work on Fox. Segments of his pop culture commentary served as interstitials for televised events like "The Billboard Music Awards" and "Fox's Movie Premiere Parties". Additionally, he hosted the short-lived music-themed "SPIN on Fox".