The article contains major spoilers for I Know What You Did Last Summer.An original cast member from I Know What You Did Last Summer recounts filming their shocking cameo in the 2025 sequel. Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt returned as Ray and Julie, exciting millennials who grew up with the 1997 teen slasher film. However, audiences received a surprising gift from another original star who returned for a brief, but memorable scene.

During a haunting dream sequence, Sarah Michelle Gellar makes a cameo as Helen Shivers. Gellar’s character died in the 1997 film and appears as a vision to deliver a haunting message to Madelyn Cline’s Danica. She stands on a stage in front of the body of Danica’s ᴅᴇᴀᴅ fiancé, wearing the beautiful tiara she wore when she became the “Croaker Queen” in the 1997 film.

Gellar kept her return under wraps for a long time, but is now speaking about it after the film premiered. Speaking with Variety, the actor said, “It was so surreal” to wear the crown again almost 30 years later.

“When they put that on my head and they put the dress on and then I stood there – they had a picture of me from when I was the Croaker Queen [in 1997] next to it — I was like, ‘Oh, this is crazy.’”

Gellar also revealed that director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson discussed the reboot with her years ago, but she wasn’t sure if people were still into the I Know What You Did franchise.

“Jenn Robinson brought it up to me like three or four years ago – this has been a long process – I thought, ‘It’s such a good idea, but you don’t know. Do people still love the movie? Do people still watch the movie?’”

What Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Comments Mean For I Know What You Did Last Summer

The Reboot Plays Up The Nostalgia

2025’s I Know What You Did Last Summer doesn’t shy away from its connections to the original film. It has the same plot, the same fishhook killer, and includes many of the same actors. Gellar’s cameo is another homage to the 1997 film, as it references the beauty pageant she won, and even gives her a similar outfit.

As Gellar explained, the director discussed the reboot with her years ago, suggesting Robinson envisioned much of the cast returning for the sequel, whether they were ᴅᴇᴀᴅ or alive. Ryan Phillippe’s Barry is the only character missing from the original four, but the film does make up for it by including another surprising character from the 1998 sequel.

Still, Helen’s appearance takes a dark turn when she’s suddenly covered in blood and starts to decompose. It’s a sign that Robinson doesn’t play it safe with the legacy characters, and that’s especially evident with the twist involving Ray.

Our Take On Gellar’s Cameo

Helen’s Sinister Dream Sequence Was A Nice Tribute To The Original

Gellar’s scene was certainly fan service, but it wasn’t a lazy or damaging cameo. It didn’t ruin her death from the original film, and it moves Danica’s story forward. It explores the guilt she feels over her fiancé’s death and heightens her desperation. It’s also a stern warning from someone with first-hand experience of this exact situation.

It manages to bring Gellar back in a way that serves the narrative and gives audiences a nice surprise. Viewers are always happy to see her pop up in something, and many are anticipating her return in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot. 2025’s I Know What You Did Last Summer would have felt incomplete without her appearance.

Source: Variety