I Know What You Did Last Summer Is The Latest Horror Franchise To Get A Legacy Sequel
I know what we're doing next summer – or at least, sometime soon. The teen slasher "I Know What You Did Last Summer" is reportedly the next big horror saga to get the legacy sequel treatment, according to Deadline, and we might even be able to catch some of the original film's characters back in action.
The outlet reports that "Do Revenge" director and co-writer Jennifer Kaytin Robinson is on board to direct the sequel for Sony, with both Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt in talks to reprise their roles from the 1997 film. This is far from the first time the story of a group of guilty teens being haunted by a hook-handed man has been revisited: the original was followed up by two sequels, and a now-canceled Prime Video series re-adapted the 1973 Lois Duncan novel in 2021.
Just as the original "I Know What You Did Last Summer" rushed to theaters after Wes Craven's "Scream" hit it big (the two share the same screenwriter), the new iteration also comes hot on the heels of a slasher resurgence courtesy of 2022's "Scream." That film blatantly laid out the formula for a legacy slasher sequel – some old characters, some new, and a killer that'll cull from both groups – and also made an impressive box office haul that no doubt will inspire imitators.
The project already has a buzz-worthy filmmaker on board
With Robinson at the helm, though, this movie is sure to be anything but a knockoff. The writer-director has a pretty phenomenal track record when it comes to telling edgy, smart, entertaining stories about teens. Fans of the short-lived campus sexual assault revenge series "Sweet/Vicious" will be the first to tell you that Robinson has a knack for compelling and fun stories about Telltale Heart-style guilty consciences, which are the driving factor for the original "I Know What You Did Last Summer" films. Robinson also wrote and directed last year's deliciously venomous Netflix teen film "Do Revenge," starring Maya Hawke and Camila Mendes.
Deadline is reporting that "M.F.A." writer Leah McKendrick is on board to pen the script for the new slasher, with Neal H. Moritz potentially producing. It's worth noting that Sony had no comment on the project and that it still seems to be in the early stages. Robinson and McKendrick reportedly pitched the idea for the sequel last fall, with plans to get Hewitt and Prinze on board playing their original characters, Julie and Ray. With Kaytin in charge and core cast members on board, this news has me in the street yelling "What are you waiting for?!" like Julie herself.
The untitled "I Know What You Did Last Summer" sequel does not yet have a release date.