There are super creative horror films, like It Follows, that take audiences on a wild ride. There are more commercial flicks like the Final Destination series that are still really fun to watch. And then there's I Know What You Did Last Summer.

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This is one of the best (if one of the campiest) teen horror films of the '90s, and even though decades have passed since its initial release in 1997, fans still watch it every once in a while. It's always going to be considered a classic, and it's fun to think about what it was like behind the scenes.

Melissa Joan Hart Could Have Been Julie

Nicole lays on her bed with her head propped up by one hand in Drive Me Crazy

Melissa Joan Hart fans know her from Sabrina The Teenage Witch and that's a very sweet and innocent show. It's hard to imagine the actress starring in a horror movie.

Hart was in the running to play the part of Julie James but she decided that it wasn't something that she wanted to do. She said it was "another rip-off of Scream," according to IMDb. Ironically, there's actually an explanation for the films' similarities (more on that later).

Sarah Michelle Gellar & Jennifer Love Hewitt Auditioned For Each Other's Parts

Helen stands terrified in her torn dress in I Know What You Did Last Summer

According to IMDb, Sarah Michelle Gellar tried out for Julie's role, and Jennifer Love Hewitt went to an audition for Helen's role.

This is interesting to hear because it would have completely changed the movie. Sarah Michelle Gellar is perfect as fashionable and confident Helen, and Jennifer Love Hewitt's role as Julie has become well-known and iconic. Imagining them switching places is both fun and intriguing, to say the least.

The Author Of The Book Didn't Like The Film's Genre

I Know What You Did Last Summer

Lois Duncan was a well-known and prolific young adult author of thrillers and mysteries and she wrote the book that this movie is based on. It has the same title, character names and premise, but that's about it in terms of similarities.

Duncan didn't like that her book was turned into a slasher film since originally, I Know What You Did Last Summer was more character-driven and examined each person's internal guilt following their involvement in a car accident. In contrast, the film has a killer seeking bloody vengeance on the main characters. According to IMDb, because her daughter was murdered, Duncan didn't think that this movie should've included a literal killer.

Jennifer Love Hewitt Was Truly Scared While Filming

Jennifer on the phone in I Know What You Did Last Summer

Even though horror movie audiences know that what's happening on screen isn't real, it can still send a shiver down everyone's spines and induce that fight-or-flight response. There are terrifying movies set during the afternoon but what happens when it's time to go to bed and that spooky scene is playing in someone's head?

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As it turns out, Jennifer Love Hewitt was truly scared while filming and had a really hard time sleeping sometimes. She said, "There were definitely days where I went home and was like, 'I'm supposed to be asleep now. I don't think that that's going to happen.'"

There's A Homage To Dawson's Creek

It's easy to miss, but re-watch I Know What You Did Last Summer and  you'l notice that the characters head over to Dawson's Beach. This name wasn't a coincidence, as it was deliberately decided upon because of a rather popular TV show of the era.

According to eightieskids.com, this is because the film's writer, Kevin Williamson, created the hit teen drama Dawson's Creek, so that was a fun way to work it in.

Freddie Prince Jr. Thought Jeremy Sisto Would Play Ray

According to moviefone.com, Freddie Prince Jr. was convinced that Jeremy Sisto would play Ray and he wasn't going to get the part. In fact, he auditioned for the role a total of five times because he was just that nervous.

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Freddie Prince Jr. wanted to play Billy in Scream but after that part went to Skeet Ulrich, Kevin Williamson said the actor would definitely get something in I Know What You Did Last Summer. As promised, Freddie did in fact get to play Ray, despite his initial doubts.

Kevin Williamson Penned This Film Before Scream

Ghostface in the Prescott house from Scream

While I Know What You Did Last Summer was released after Scream thus making it seem like a rip-off, Kevin Williamson actually wrote the screenplays the other way around.

He penned this adaptation first but he had trouble selling it but when Scream did so well, I Know What You Did Last Summer (and many more self-aware teen slasher movies like it) was quickly greenlit. This is a cool fact to learn about Scream as well.

Jamie Lee Curtis Was A Mentor Of Sorts For Jennifer Love Hewitt

Laurie Strode looking scared in Halloween

According to eightieskids.com, Jamie Lee Curtis would drop by the film set once in a while and talk to Jennifer Love Hewitt. That must have been an amazing experience!

This is really fun to hear about since, of course, Jamie Lee Curtis has played such incredible parts over the years, including Laurie Strode in Halloween. It's hard not to see Laurie's influence on many teenage girls who headlined slasher movies, specifically Julie James in I Know What You Did Last Summer.

The Killer Has A Hook Because Of A Real Urban Legend

Remember the urban legend about a man with a hook targeting teenagers who were parked in cars? According to IMDb, The Hook wields a fishing hook because of that legend, not because it's what happened in the book.

Kevin Williamson explained: "Basically what I was doing was I was setting the framework to say, 'Alright, audience: That's that legend. Now here's a new one.'"

Jennifer Love Hewitt Got Bruises During Filming

Julie standing looking scared outside in I Know What You Did Last Summer

Jennifer Love Hewitt got bruises during the film shoot. According to The Huffington Post, the actress said that this was from "falling and chasing and running."

Even though this can be a pretty corny movies at times, watching Julie really run from the killer is still terrifying and makes this a classic 90's horror film that can freak audiences out even today.

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