I Know What You Did Last Summer director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson has revealed that she pitched some wild ideas in a bid to entice legacy star Sarah Michelle Gellar to return. The movie serves as a legacy sequel, and the fourth film in the I Know What You Did Last Summer movie franchise. The I Know What You Did Last Summer cast list will include a combination of new actors, as well as original franchise stars, including the returning Freddie Prinze Jr., and Jennifer Love Hewitt. And it seems that Gellar was also approached about making a return to the franchise.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Robinson reveals that she pitched some wild story ideas in a bid to try to convince Gellar to return. She mentions that one of her key pitches included exploring a scenario where Gellar’s iconic character Helen Shivers isn’t actually ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, but in hiding, despite her death in the original movie. She explains how Gellar refuted the idea, reiterating that her character was definitively ᴅᴇᴀᴅ in the franchise, ruling out the chances of bringing her back. Check out Robinson’s full comments below:

“I tried to pitch some crazy s— too. I was like, ‘What if it’s like you weren’t ᴅᴇᴀᴅ and you’re actually alive, but in hiding?’ And Sarah’s like, ‘I was on ice. I was the most ᴅᴇᴀᴅ a person could be. You can see my frozen body.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, but what if?’ And she said, ‘I am ᴅᴇᴀᴅ. I am Sarah ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Gellar.'”

What This Means For I Know What You Did Last Summer 2025

The Movie Already Has Two Returning Legacy Stars, Three Would Be Pushing It

The I Know What You Did Last Summer sequel has to tread carefully if it wants to achieve success, and this means setting up a strong story that can stand alone, whilst also respecting the original. The movie already has Love Hewitt and Prinze Jr. reprising their roles from the first twoo movies, and having them perform a metaphorical pᴀssing of the torch to the new cast could work well. But having too many returning stars might not work within the context of the narrative, especially when bringing back a character who already died in an earlier installment.

Of course, there would be options that could be explored outside of having Helen miraculously survive, such as the use of deepfake or de-aging technology, that would have allowed Gellar to return. However, it seems that the actor is not interested in following her husband Prinze Jr. back into the franchise, especially when resurrecting ᴅᴇᴀᴅ characters can often seem like a lazy way for franchises to bring actors back.

Our Take On Gellar’s I Know What You Did Last Summer Absence

The Movie Should Fare Better Without An Overreliance On What Has Come Before

Gellar’s decision feels like the right one for a movie that could be used to reboot the franchise, especially as it might function like a soft reboot in a similar way to Scream 5. Gellar’s reluctance to return could have a lot to do with the fact she has already agreed to reprise her role in the planned Buffy the Vampire Slayer revival show. This was obviously a big career decision for Gellar, and it seems she was possibly wary of returning to too many past roles. There will be high hopes for success for the upcoming I Know What You Did Last Summer movie, and it should fare well if it’s not too reliant on the previous installments.

Source: EW