The trailer for I Know What You Did Last Summer just dropped, and it's 1997 all over again—if 1997 had better lighting, more attractive 20-somethings, and a lingering sense of déjà vu.
Sony is pulling a full-circle moment here: Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze Jr. are back, blood-soaked past and all. It's billed as a soft reboot, but let's be honest—it's more like a TikTok remix of your MySpace playlist.
Yes, the original was campy. No, it was never Scream. But it hit a cultural nerve during the late-'90s teen horror boom. Hewitt's iconic “What are you waiting for?!” scream turned into a meme before memes existed. That cultural cachet is what Sony's banking on now.
The trailer doesn't give much away—just quick cuts of shadowy figures, beach-town dread, and glimmers of trauma nostalgia. And the hook? Still here. Still swinging. The new cast (Chase Sui Wonders, Madelyn Cline, Tyriq Withers, etc.) feels algorithm-approved—beautiful, brooding, and built for viral edits.
But plot? Total blackout. All we know is: someone remembers, someone's guilty, and the hook man's got a better cinematographer.
Let's be real—nostalgia is Hollywood's favorite jump scare. This revival fits a well-worn pattern: studios mining millennial trauma for box office gold. It's the same playbook used by Scream (2022), Halloween (2018), and Final Destination (soon to return, too). But where those reboots evolved or at least commented on the genre, IKWYDLS seems content to repackage it.
Remember the third film? Neither do most people. It skipped theaters, hit DVD, and vanished like a Snapchat. So why bet on this franchise again?
Because millennial money talks. As Variety noted in 2023, Gen Y's nostalgia-fueled content consumption surged 28% post-COVID. Add to that the continued obsession with true crime, and a franchise about guilt, secrets, and revenge suddenly feels weirdly current.
And bringing back Hewitt? Smart move. She's not just a scream queen—she's a symbol of a pre-Internet era when horror was more about atmosphere than algorithms. Her presence gives this reboot weight. Not gravitas exactly—but at least a ghost of credibility.
So, does the trailer slay or just coast on vibes? Honestly, both. It's stylish, self-aware, and just nostalgic enough to lure you in. But whether it's carving out something fresh or just carving up old tropes remains to be seen.
Would you trust a franchise that ghosted you after DVD sales flopped? Let us know—hook in the comments.
