Jennifer Love Hewitt is back as Julie James for I Know What You Did Last Summer, though it didn’t come without a few hopes of her own for the character’s long-awaited return. The Golden Globe nominee first broke out in film with her leading turn in the horror franchise, starring as one of the four young protagonists who inadvertently is involved in a hit-and-run and become stalked by someone a year later. Hewitt previously reprised the role for the 1998 sequel, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, though was absent from the 2006 standalone sequel, I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer.

Now, Hewitt is back for I Know What You Did Last Summer, which serves as a sequel to the first two films and sees Julie now working as a college professor specializing in the psychology of fear and trauma. Though having previously divorced Freddie Prinze Jr.’s Ray, also back for the new film, the two find themselves pulled back together as a new group of young adults become terrorized by someone donning a Fisherman costume, forcing them to confront the demons of their past.

Ahead of the movie’s release, ScreenRant interviewed Jennifer Love Hewitt to discuss I Know What You Did Last Summer. The franchise veteran revealed the one requirement she had to return as Julie and why she’s loed the recent surge in horror legacy sequels, as well as her unique relationship with fans and the franchise’s iconic line of “What are you waiting for, huh?“, an update on 9-1-1 season 8’s production, and her thoughts on a legacy sequel to her cult favorite crime comedy.

Hewitt Knew Julie Couldn’t Move On Completely From Her Past

“…I Wouldn’t Have Believed It Otherwise.”

With the legacy sequel being the first in the franchise to return to Southport after the aforementioned standalone sequel and TV reboot, I Know What You Did Last Summer brings back both familiar faces and mentions to the original films. However, while Prinze Jr. was the first to be cast, Hewitt’s didn’t come quite as directly, with the star sharing that her one requirement for bringing Julie back was that she “had not let this go“.

Clarifying that she didn’t mean “she hadn’t moved on“, “lived a life” and “figured out how to function“, Hewitt went on to explain that “the trauma was always going to be there” for Julie after her and Ray’s previous encounters with The Fisherman. This further inspired Hewitt’s performance as she “really wanted to lean into that“, feeling it was important “to see that that time and that trauma had sat with her“ in the 25-plus years since the original I Know What You Did Last Summer.

“Also, I think Julia is somebody who has spent 27 years grieving the girl that was on the road that night that never got to continue,” Hewitt described. “I wanted to see that in her, obviously, in a very quick storytelling of her time in the movie. And I feel like we did that, so I was really happy about that.“

The Rise In Legacy Sequels Reminded Hewitt She’ll Always Have A Place In The Genre

“…It Has Been The First Place That Has Accepted Women As Really Tough, Bada– Characters…”

The upcoming arrival of I Know What You Did Last Summer keeps the horror genre’s trend of legacy sequels alive, following in the footsteps of Blumhouse’s Halloween trilogy, Nia DaCosta’s Candyman and the recent Scream movies, also produced by franchise creator Kevin Williamson. With the latter also seeing the return of Neve Campbell as heroine Sidney Prescott, the question arose of a potential conversation between her and Hewitt, to which she confirmed that while they didn’t talk, she initially planned to.

“At one point, I was going to reach out to her and be like, ‘Let’s have this conversation. How do you feel about it?’,” Hewitt shared. “And then I didn’t. But she’s just such an icon for me, Neve, and Jamie Lee, and all of the final girls that are out there. I’m so privileged to be in that company and that club, and I just root for us all to get to keep going and coming back.“

Hewitt went on to praise the fact that the horror genre continues to offer major roles for herself and other genre veterans, describing it as being “such an interesting place” given it has “been the first place that has accepted women as really tough, bada– characters so easily“. Even now, the star feels the genre is “a place that says, ‘Age? What age? Come back, be these characters again‘”, and finds it “so powerful” to have gotten the opportunity to bring Julie back.

Hewitt Has “Never Gotten Tired” Of People Reciting The Franchise’s Iconic Quote To Her

“My Three-Year-Old Now Says It Daily.”

While The Fisherman and тιтular note remain some of the more iconic aspects of the franchise, another memorable element is Julie’s line of “What are you waiting for, huh?” from the original I Know What You Did Last Summer, something that was even parodied in the original Scary Movie. In reflecting on the legacy of the quote and fans reciting it to her, Hewitt ᴀssures “I’ve never gotten tired of it“, with it now even extending to her three-year-old son, who “now says it daily” after having heard it through the new movie’s marketing and interviews.

“Just the other day he was standing on the stairs, and he goes, ‘Mommy, I want to go to the park. What are you waiting for, huh?’,” Hewitt said with a chuckle. “And he just says these things, and now for dinner, he’ll be like, “I’m hungry. What are you waiting for, huh?” And it’s hilarious, literally me on the floor laughing every time. So I love it. It’s been great, and I just appreciate that there’s a line that means that much to people out there.“

Hewitt went on to share that her son is “always playing The Fisherman“, playfully telling the Golden Globe nominee “I kill you now, mommy“, to which she corrects him “Julie James doesn’t die“, and therefore “you can’t kill mommy“. “It’s very funny, my friend was here the other day, she’s like, ‘This is such a disturbing way to play’, and I’m like, ‘Yeah, well, it’s the phase we’re in, it’s fine’,” Hewitt added with a laugh.

Hewitt Would Make A Heartbreakers Sequel “In A Heartbeat”

She’s Also Gearing Up To Film 9-1-1 Season 9

Looking beyond I Know What You Did Last Summer, one movie in Hewitt’s filmography that has stuck with us is that of her cult favorite 2001 crime comedy Heartbreakers. When asked her thoughts on the potential for a legacy sequel in the vein of the slasher, Hewitt revealed she “would do it in a heartbeat“, sharing her own thoughts on how a sequel could “see my character now as a mom with another con-artist daughter“, but still feature Sigourney Weaver’s return “being the boss that she is“.

“I would love to do that, I think it would be great,” Hewitt expressed. “But I also think that they could remake the movie with totally different people and have that also be amazing. [I would be cool with that] as long as they let me stop by for a second.“

In more recent years, Hewitt has found success as one of the lead stars of the first responder procedural 9-1-1, which was renewed for season 9 this past April. When asked for an update on the show’s future, Hewitt confirmed filming is “back in a couple of weeks“, humorously sharing “I’ll be back answering phones and in a totally different trauma” than the new film.

Stay tuned for our other I Know What You Did Last Summer interviews with:

• Madelyn Cline
• Chase Sui Wonders, Jonah Hauer-King, Tyriq Withers and Sarah Pidgeon
• Freddie Prinze Jr. & Co-Writer/Director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson

Source: ScreenRant Plus