Surprisingly, in Sarah Michelle Gellar's decade-spanning career, she's only had two movies rated fresh on Rotten Tomatoes (and one of those was a documentary she was in). But despite their lack of critical appeal, many of Gellar's films have gone on to be massive blockbuster hits and are considered modern classics.
From a hit-and-run victim seeking vengeance, to sadistic stepsiblings, and even a talking dog...here are Sarah Michelle Gellar's ten best films, according to the movie review site, Rotten Tomatoes.
Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (22%)
This 2004 sequel to Scooby-Doo followed the gang as they return to Coolsville. There, it seems that someone has turned old costumes into real monsters. Suddenly, the gang realizes they have another case to solve! While the movie retained a little of the original's charm and adult humor, the entire movie seemed much more childlike. One of the highlights of the sequel is that Alicia Silverstone joined the cast as a reporter looking to undermine Mystery Inc. But all in all, it was a total dud.
Scooby-Doo (30%)
Scoring slightly higher, the original movie holds on with a 30%. However, despite the bad critical reviews, audiences favored the movie much more and it went on to gross almost $276 million at the box office.
Kids loved the hijinks and action, while adults loved the extremely obvious adult humor, like numerous references to potheads and the sexualization of Daphne and Velma. The film's casting was also superb, with many praising Matthew Lillard's performance as Shaggy. The cast also included Freddie Prinze Jr., Linda Cardellini, Rowan Atkinson, and of course, Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Harvard Man (33%)
This little-known movie from 2002 stars Adrian Grenier (of Entourage fame) as a Harvard basketball player who is in desperate need of money. His "girlfriend" (aka: girl he's sleeping with but barely knows... played by Gellar) tells him that her dad is part of the mob and if he loses the basketball game on purpose, her dad will give him money. He blows the game, gets the money, and then takes a massive dose of LSD. The rest of the movie is one long...very, very, long drug trip. One critic described the film as "pure wankery."
TMNT (34%)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were huge in the '80s and early '90s. Then, they hit a slump in popularity, being confined to the realms of nostalgia. But strangely, as the first decade of the 2000s came to a close, their popularity skyrocketed once again.
This naturally led to more films being made, the first being TMNT in 2007. In this animated film, Gellar plays the role of April, the reporter. The movie ended up being a massive success, earning almost $100 million worldwide, and also spawned video games and paved the way for more films.
Southland Tales (38%)
This film is... truly something else. It premiered at Cannes in 2006 and was met with a disastrous reaction. For 2006, the film seemed insane. Republicans were involved in a rigged election, California was experiencing a devastating heatwave and drought, a porn star had dirt on a presidential candidate, mass shootings were happening in public places, and the government enforced interstate travel visas. Upon its release, the movie was ridiculed beyond belief. Audiences kept asking, how could any of that happen? As you can imagine, nowadays, the movie has a newfound respect. Many hail it as being ahead of its time and numerous retrospectives have been written.
The Grudge (39%)
Another critical dud that went on to be a blockbuster hit, The Grudge is a remake of the Japanese horror film Ju-On. In it, when someone dies in an extreme circumstance, "the grudge" is formed, which interacts with the living sort of like a demon.
The movie went on to earn almost $190 million at the box office, becoming Gellar's biggest hit at the box office as the lead role. The movie went on to spawn two sequels, as well as a remake that was released in January 2020.
I Know What You Did Last Summer (42%)
I Know What You Did Last Summer went on to be one of the highest-grossing teen movies of the '90s, but did you know it's actually based on a YA novel from 1973? The story centers around a group of kids who accidentally hit a man while driving drunk. They think they've killed him, so they dump his body in the ocean. Little do they know, he's still alive, and comes back for revenge. The movie, along with Scream, is seen as one of the pinnacle examples of the '90s horror genre.
Small Soldiers (48%)
When a group of toys comes to life, an epic battle ensues. A toy set known as the Gorgonites (which are like ugly animal-orc-creatures) are being pursued by the Commando Elite, a set of toys similar to GI-Joe on steroids. The film blended live-action and special effects that were actually quite good for 1998. The movie also attracted a colorful and talented cast, including Kirsten Dunst, Denis Leary, Tommy Lee Jones, David Cross, and of course, Sarah Michelle Gellar. Small Soldiers was originally supposed to be a version of Toy Story that could attract teen viewers, but was later altered to be more kid-friendly. Despite the re-edits, the movie still received a PG-13, which many believe hurt its box-office potential.
Cruel Intentions (54%)
Easily one of Gellar's most recognizable roles, the movie is loosely based on Dangerous Liaisons and follows two stepsiblings who pursue their erotic and sadistic pleasures. The movie is loaded with backstabbing and blackmail, and one scene about a kiss between Gellar and Selma Blair has gone down in the history books. Many of the scenes have not aged well, though, including scenes of coerced sex, outing a gay person, and blatant racism. The final scene, however, where 'Bittersweet Symphony' plays, remains a fan-favorite to this day.
Scream 2 (82%)
Cici Cooper (played by Gellar) was home alone in the Omega Beta Zeta sorority house when she was attacked by the Ghostface killer. Gellar's scene in Scream 2 is one of the most notable in the franchise, and Scream 2 as a whole is considered one of the best horror movies of all time (it's RT score is even better than the original). Other highlights of Scream 2 was the surprise ending where Laurie Metcalf was actually the killer.