I Know What You Did Last Summer

This article is about the film. For the original novel by Lois Duncan, see I Know What You Did Last Summer (novel). For the Supernatural episode, see I Know What You Did Last Summer (Supernatural).

I Know What You Did Last Summer
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Jim Gillespie
Produced by	William S. Beasley Neal H. Mortiz Stokely Chaffin
Screenplay by	Kevin Williamson
Based on	Novel: Lois Duncan
Starring	Jennifer Love Hewitt Sarah Michelle Gellar Ryan Phillippe Freddie Prinze, Jr. Bridgette Wilson Anne Heche
Music by	John Debney
Cinematography	Denis Crossan
Editing by	Steve Mirkovich
Studio	Mandalay Entertainment
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date(s)	October 17, 1997
Running time	101 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$17 million (est)
Box office	$125,586,134

I Know What You Did Last Summer is a 1997 American slasher film based on the 1973 novel of the same name by Lois Duncan. The film stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe and Freddie Prinze Jr., with Anne Heche and Bridgette Wilson appearing in supporting roles. I Know What You Did Last Summer centers on four friends who are being stalked by a killer, one year after covering up a car accident in which they were involved. The film was directed by Jim Gillespie, from a screenplay written by Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream.

I Know What You Did Last Summer received mixed reviews from critics, but was highly successful, grossing over $125 million at the box office. It was also nominated for and won multiple awards. As a result the film has been parodied and referenced in popular culture. The film was followed by two sequels, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998) and the straight-to-DVD release I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer (2006). Though the former film sees a continuation of the plotline established in its predecessor, the latter film establishes a new plotline and does not star any cast members from the previous two installments.

Plot

Four friends, Helen Shivers (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Julie James (Jennifer Love Hewitt), Barry Cox (Ryan Phillippe), and Ray Bronson (Freddie Prinze Jr.) go out of town to celebrate Helen's winning the Miss Croaker pageant. On their way home, they hit and kill a man. They dump the corpse in the ocean and agree to never discuss again what had happened.

One year later, Julie is returning home from college. She has not spoken to the others since the accident. Upon returning home, Julie finds a letter reading "I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER!" Panicking, Julie goes to see Helen at her family's department store.. Julie shows Helen the letter and they decide to visit Barry. The trio go to see Max (Johnny Galecki), but Barry insists on going in the factory alone. Barry persuades Max to go into the back room and angrily attacks him, telling Max he should keep his mouth shut.

Inside the factory, Max is brutally murdered with a meat hook to his neck by an anonymous figure in a raincoat. The killer attacks Barry next, running him over with his own car, but he lives.

Julie arrives at the hospital to see Barry and finds Helen and Ray there. Julie believes the man they hit was named David Egan, because a newspaper article a few weeks after the accident mentioned his body washing up on shore. Helen and Julie go to visit the Egan family. Missy (Anne Heche), David's sister, tells them she had a visit from a man claiming to be David's friend named Billy Blue.

As Helen goes to sleep that night, a figure enters her room with a pair of scissors. The next morning, Helen wakes up with the crown on her head and her hair cut short and the word "SOON" written on her mirror.

Julie gets a call from Barry, who tells her to come to Helen's. On the way, Julie hears rattling in her trunk. She opens the trunk to find it full of live crabs and Max's dead body. She shuts the trunk, runs to Helen's and brings her and Barry to her car, but the body and crabs have disappeared. Julie is convinced the killer took the body and that they are not safe.

Later they run into Ray back at the house, in which Barry punches Ray in the face, fell to the ground and tells them he got a letter. Julie decides to see Missy again while Helen and Barry watch each other's backs at the parade. Julie meets Missy again and Missy admits that David committed suicide that night. David had been wracked with guilt after accidentally killing his fiance, Susie, in a car accident on the same road on the same night a year before. Missy shows Julie an alleged suicide note written in the same style as Julie's letter from the killer. Julie tries to explain that she was in a car that hit and killed David that night, but Missy becomes irate and tells Julie to leave.

At the Croaker pageant, Helen sees Barry murdered by the killer during a performance of Irene Cara's "Fame". A police officer (Stuart Greer) drives Helen home. The killer lures the cop into an alley and kills him. Helen runs to the store while her sister, Elsa, is working, but the killer finds both of them and, whilst Elsa is locking the back door, he kills Elsa. Helen manages to elude the killer by jumping out of the window into a dumpster and she flees through the back alleys to the parade. Helen then turns around and is then stopped by the killer who shoves her into a stack of tires and slashes her to death, her screams are drowned out by the parade.

Julie goes to see Ray on his boat and tells him the story, but he does not believe her. Julie notices the name on his boat is "Billy Blue", the same name used by David's friend who had visited Missy, and accuses him of the murders. He chases her but is knocked unconscious by a man who tells Julie to get on his boat. The man is Ben Willis (Muse Watson), a fisherman who is revealed to be the murderer. He murdered David Egan after Ben's daughter, Susie, died in the car accident Missy told Julie about. Ben blamed David and killed him a year later, making it look like a suicide. On the way home, Ben was hit by the group.

Willis then pulls out the hook and proceeds to chase Julie. In a room full of ice, Julie finds Helen and Barry's bodies. Ray climbs aboard and is almost killed by Ben, but is caught in the boat's net. Then ensues an old fashioned fisticuffs between Ben and Ray, the latter administering a fairly hearty and heartfelt beating to Ben. He climbs back aboard and saves Julie. Ben gets his hand caught in a rope and Ray hoists him into the air where Ben falls into the ocean.

Back on shore, Ray tells Julie that the reason he went to see Missy was because he was guilty and had to know who they hit. He tells her he loves her and they embrace. When a policeman asks for any reason why Ben would want to kill them, Julie and Ray both say they don't know. Ben's body is not recovered.

A year later, Julie is in her sophomore year of college and is planning a trip to New York with Ray. Julie receives a cell phone call from Ray as she is in the bathroom turning on the shower. She steps out to take the call, and she receives a letter resembling the one she had got from Ben, but it only contains a pool party invitation. Julie returns to the bathroom, which has now filled with steam. On the shower door, "I STILL KNOW" is written. Ben jumps through the shower door and Julie screams.

Cast

See also: List of I Know What You Did Last Summer characters

• Jennifer Love Hewitt as Julie James
• Sarah Michelle Gellar as Helen Shivers
• Ryan Phillippe as Barry William Cox
• Freddie Prinze, Jr. Ray Bronson
• Bridgette Wilson as Elsa Shivers
• Anne Heche as Missy Egan
• Muse Watson as Ben Willis
• Johnny Galecki as Max Neurick
• Stuart Greer as Officer David Caporizon

Production

The film was shot over 50 days beginning on March 31, 1997. Shooting began in Southport, North Carolina and ended in Bodega Bay, California where the car accident was filmed.

Music

The film produced two soundtracks. One of them featured the score composed by John Debney, while the other contained various rock songs found in the film.

Score

I Know What You Did Last Summer (Original Motion Picture Score)
Film score (Digital download)/Audio CD by John Debney
Released	October 7, 1997
Length	50:44
Label	Super Tracks Music Group

1. A New Beginning (Julie's Theme) [1:52]
2. Barry's Underwater Adventure [2:33]
3. Homecoming [0:53]
4. Crabhouse Gaffing [1:10]
5. Someone's Watchin'/Chased [3:26]
6. Missy's Story [2:10]
7. The Houseguest [1:57]
8. A Little 'Trim'/Trunk Surprise [3:12]
9. His Name Was.../Car Trouble [3:29]
10. Hiding the Body [3:15]
11. In Pursuit of Helen [2:50]
12. The Note [1:39]
13. Gaffing Barry/Missy's Home [3:19]
14. No Escape For Helen [2:32]
15. Julie Discovers the Truth [3:21]
16. The Night Softly Whispers [1:49]
17. Fond Memories [0:43]
18. Julie Takes a Cruise [2:56]
19. Taking a Stand [1:09]
20. Final Confrontation [4:03]
21. Julie Takes a Shower [1:20]

Soundtrack

I Know What You Did Last Summer (The Album)
Soundtrack album (Digital download)/Audio CD by Various
Released	October 7, 1997
Length	51:14
Label	Sony Music

1. "Hush" by Kula Shaker (2:55)
2. "Summer Breeze" by Type O Negative (4:57)
3. "D.U.I." by The Offspring (2:26)
4. "Kid" by Green Apple Quick Step (3:17)
5. "This Ain't the Summer of Love" by L7 (3:09)
6. "Losin' It" by Soul Asylum (3:01)
7. "Hey Bulldog" by Toad the Wet Sprocket (2:31)
8. "My Baby's Got the Strangest Ways" by Southern Culture on the Skids (3:59)
9. "Waterfall" by The Din Pedals (3:47)
10. "Clumsy" by Our Lady Peace (4:27)
11. "One Hundred Days" by Flick (3:40)
12. "Great Life" by Goatboy (3:50)
13. "2 Wicky" by Hooverphonic (4:44)
14. "Don't Mean Anything" by Adam Cohen (3:43)
15. "Proud" by Korn (3:17)

Reception

The film received mostly mixed-to-negative reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, 36% of comments were positive. In another review, Metacritic reported an aggregate score of 52 out of 100. Critic Roger Ebert wrote in his review, "The best shot in this film is the first one. Not a good sign."

Jennifer Love Hewitt was praised for her performance as Julie James by an Entertainment Weekly columnist stating that Hewitt knows how to scream with soul.

Home Media

I Know What You Did Last Summer has been released on DVD and Blu-ray. Special features include an audio commentary by the filmmakers, a 'making-of' featurette, a music video and a short film directed by Jim Gillespie.

Awards and nominations

Year	Ceremony	Category	Result
1997	ASCAP Award	Top Box Office Films, John Debney	Won
1998	Saturn Award	Best Horror Film	Nominated
1998	Blockbuster Entertainment Award	Favorite Female Newcomer, Favorite Actress, Jennifer Love Hewitt	Won
1998		Favorite Supporting Actress – Horror, Sarah Michelle Gellar	Won
1998		Favorite Actor – Horror, Freddie Prinze Jr.	Nominated
1998		Favorite Actress – Horror, Jennifer Love Hewitt	Nominated
1998		Favorite Supporting Actor, Ryan Phillippe	Nominated
1998	IHG Award	Best Movie	Nominated
1998	MTV Movie Awards	Best Breakthrough Performance, Sarah Michelle Gellar	Nominated
1998	Young Artist Award	Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actress, Jennifer Love Hewitt	Nominated

External links

• I Know What You Did Last Summer at the Internet Movie Database
• I Know What You Did Last Summer at AllRovi
• I Know What You Did Last Summer at Box Office Mojo
• I Know What You Did Last Summer at Rotten Tomatoes