By Brian Gallagher For Dailymail.com 1:45 am Mar 15, 2023, updated 2:39 am Mar 15, 2023
Freddie Prinze Jr. only had a handful of minor TV guest stars and film roles to his name when he broke through in 1997’s “I Know What You Did Last Summer” … although the experience nearly made him quit acting .
The 47-year-old actor launched his new horror podcast That Was Pretty Scary on Tuesday, which begins with an in-depth look at I Know What You Did Last Summer.
He revealed in a new interview with TooFab that while he was grateful to have made the film, it was still such a bad experience that he didn’t even see the film when it premiered.
The actor actually watched the film for the first time while preparing for his podcast, as he explained why it’s been such a difficult experience.
This comes just a month after it was reported that both Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt will return for a new sequel with an all-new cast.
Almost gave up: Freddie Prinze Jr. only had a handful of minor TV guest stars and film roles to his name when he broke through in 1997 with I Know What You Did Last Summer … although the experience nearly made him quit acting. Depth: The 47-year-old actor launched his new horror podcast That Was Pretty Scary on Tuesday, which begins with an in-depth look at I Know What You Did Last Summer
The film is set in a sleepy seaside town where four teenagers (Prinze Jr., Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe) were involved in a horrific accident that they all vowed never to talk about again.
After they all return from their freshman year of college, they learn that someone else knows their terrible secret and their life is in danger from a hooked maniac.
The film grossed $126 million worldwide and helped launch the young stars’ careers, although Prinze Jr. had a rough time, mostly because of director Jim Gillespie.
“It’s not that we disagreed, I knew what the right choices were for the Ray character. He wanted another actor, a really good actor named Jeremy Sisto, who I know and who I like and respect very, very much,” said Prinze Jr.
He added that both the studio – Columbia Pictures – and writer Kevin Williamson pushed for Prinze Jr. instead of Sisto, and Prinze Jr. was ultimately cast, although it resulted in a rough environment on set.
“I’ll give this to the man, I think his name is Jim, he made no bones about it. There was no passive aggressiveness – which I hate – he was very direct in the fact that “I don’t want you in this movie,” the actor said, laughing.
“Well, if this is your first job and you hear those words, it breaks you, man. It just breaks you,’ he admitted.
The actor met his wife Sarah Michelle Gellar on this set, although they would not start dating until several years later, and he credited Ryan Phillippe with keeping him quiet on set.
Teenagers: The film is set in a sleepy seaside town where four teenagers (Prinze Jr., Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe) were involved in a horrific accident that they all vowed never to talk about a big hit again : The film grossed $126 million worldwide and helped launch the young stars’ careers, although Prinze Jr. had a rough time mostly because of the director, Jim Gillespie. Director: “I’ll give this to the man, I think his name is Jim , he made no bones about it. There was no passive aggressiveness — which I hate — he was very direct in the fact that “I don’t want you in this movie,” the actor said with a laugh Wife: The actor met his wife, Sarah Michelle Gellar, on that set , although they wouldn’t start dating until a few years later, and he credited Ryan Phillippe with keeping him quiet on set
“So when I had those moments where the director would give me psychotic notes like, ‘Don’t keep your mouth open. You look stupid doing that’ — that was exactly the note, word for word, I’ll never forget it — and I guess I’m either going to break down or I’m going to have to smack that guy’s ass. Like those were the only two options on my mind,” the actor said.
“I remember Ryan coming up to me and being like, ‘Fuck that guy, man. How many times did you audition for this movie?” and I say, “Five times,” he says, “Yeah, you deserve it. You weren’t offered the role, you earned it. Every time you left there were fewer people and then you were on your own which booked you that role. Screw his notes. Every note he gives you just says, ‘Okay, and do what you want to do.’ He was the first person to say that to me,” Prinze Jr. admitted, although he added that while he bonded with Phillippe on set, they aren’t closer now.
“It was very difficult to wake up in the morning – or in the afternoon because we shot a lot of nights – and go to work with the right attitude,” he added.
“Because I knew that the moment we got down to rehearsal, I would either be Mr. Pay No Mind where he would give notes to everyone before we shot anything or before we rehearsed except me,” he said the actor added.
“He made it a point to single me out every time, get the other actors together without me, and give them all the notes. And I think, well, was he just trying to do some method crap? I just don’t get it,’ he admitted.
His tensions with the director reached a breaking point when he shot a motorboat scene for the end of the film, where he almost completely left the set.
“I almost caught a flight and went home. I was ready. I had enough. They had broken a lot of union stuff they shouldn’t have, like union rules. All sorts of things. And I just felt like if I’m not wanted here, fuck it,” the actor said.
“There are other things I can do. I quit Le Cordon Bleu to make this film. I’m going to be a cook, that’s what my mother wanted anyway. In the evening I packed my suitcase. I just wanted to go out of business,” he said, adding that a producer stepped in and persuaded him to stay, though hostility toward the director lingered.
Notes: “So when I had those moments where the director would give me psychotic notes like, ‘Don’t keep your mouth open. You look stupid doing this’ – that was exactly the note, word for word, I’ll never forget it – and I think I’m either breaking down or I’m going to have to hit this guy. Like those were the only two options on my mind,” the actor told Difficult. “It was very difficult to wake up in the morning — or in the afternoon because we shot a lot of nights — and go to work with the right attitude,” he added
“I wanted to fight this guy two or three times. One time I felt like that was a legitimate reason and the other two I was just pissed off, which isn’t true. I’m glad everyone talked me into it,” he added.
“In hindsight, I’m not upset because that film kickstarted my whole career. I wouldn’t have any of what I have without this film, I wouldn’t have my wife, I wouldn’t have all the other films I’ve done, I wouldn’t have this podcast. We would not conduct this interview. I’m here because of this fight and this pain and it was those things,” the actor admitted.
While adding that it was “a struggle to finish work every day” and that he was “in pain every day,” he admitted it helped him prepare for the film business.
“It sounds weird to say that — I’m forever grateful to Jim for being such an asshole because I’ve never met one like that since,” he added.
“I’m prepared for any minor A-hole in the business. And I’m sure he’s a hero in someone else’s story. I’m sure he helped someone else and they loved him. But for me, he took out a lot of frustration on me,” the actor said.
“He was a first-time director, he didn’t have a lot of time, he didn’t have the budget he wanted, he didn’t have the actor he wanted, and he didn’t know how to deal with that frustration,’ he said .
He added that his experience with the 1998 sequel I Still Know What You Did Last Summer was “the exact opposite experience.”
The actor revealed that sequel director Danny Cannon “was hard to work with, but he also never asked anything of anyone that he wouldn’t ask for himself.”
Looking back: “In hindsight, I’m not upset because this film started my whole career. I wouldn’t have any of what I have without this film, I wouldn’t have my wife, I wouldn’t have all the other films I’ve done, I wouldn’t have this podcast. We would not conduct this interview. I’m here because of this fight and this pain and it was those things,” the actor admitted