Jennifer Love Hewitt has confessed she felt anxious about stepping back into the spotlight for the new I Know What You Did Last Summer movie.
The 46-year-old actress is reprising her iconic role as Julie James nearly three decades after first starring in the 1997 horror classic. But despite the excitement surrounding her return, Jennifer admitted she was hesitant about revisiting the franchise.
“All of my friends had to talk me into it,” she told Vulture. “Literally up until the last night before shooting, they were like, ‘You know you’re going tomorrow, right?’”
Her biggest worry? How audiences would react to seeing her older self back in the role she made famous at just 18.
“What people were going to say about how much older I would seem than when I was 18 — that’s literally the only thing I was anxious about,” she said.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Jennifer revealed she initially had doubts about rejoining the project, especially if it was just for the sake of ‘90s nostalgia.
“I was hesitant at first,” she said. “I wanted to make sure that she fit into the movie in the right way and that there was a reason for her to come back… I wanted her part in the movie to matter.”
Jennifer believes the character of Julie James is right where she’s supposed to be — still carrying the emotional weight of her past.
“She’s exactly who I thought she would be,” she said. “It was important for me to not see a Julie James that had healed her trauma. She needed to stay in trauma… so this version of her feels right.”
Though the character has stayed the same at heart, Jennifer said the years have also transformed her into someone new.
“She feels like the same person from the original movie, but she also feels like a new character in some ways because of all the time that’s gone by.”
Before filming, she even rewatched the original with her kids — their very first horror movie experience.
“It was a total trip,” she laughed. “It was really fun and exciting and interesting to go back and watch that girl on the road that night.”
With her return, Jennifer Love Hewitt not only revives a beloved horror heroine — she redefines her.
