“Women with the ability to be small and mighty”: I Know What You Did Last Summer star Jennifer Love Hewitt shares what she loves about horror movies

It has been almost three decades since Julie James discovered who the hook-wielding killer is, which turned Jennifer Love Hewitt one of the most iconic "final girls."

To preface, final girl is a well-known trope in horror movies. It refers to a film's last surviving female character, who wages war against the villain. I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) used the same trope. It showed Hewitt's Julie facing the deadly fisherman in the final moments. Eventually, the 2025 reboot also depicts her as the final girl.

With this project, Hewitt joins a long list of final girls, which includes Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween (1978) and Neve Campbell in Scream (1996). Some viewers find this trope empowering, while others question its underlying intention. Jennifer Love Hewitt also revealed her thoughts on this horror movie trope. During a recent conversation with Variety, she said:

"Horror movies have always seen 'final girls' as these women with the ability to be small and mighty, or whatever they look like; they just have the ability to be amazing and kick ass and all of these things. And I just love that about horror movies."

Hewitt hinted that the trope defies the conventions of what women are capable of. Whether in 1997 or 2025, it allowed her to be a prominent part of the story, which other genres may struggle to provide. In line with this, she said:

“The women in these horror movies that are coming back are strong. And they mean something in this world. Fans want to see them. Where other parts of society try to go, “Oh, well, she’s gotten a little older, so we’ll just go get this person now, ‘Final Girls’ are ageless. It’s a good message to send: We do get better with age, and sometimes we get a little feistier, and that can be fun to watch.”

Disclaimer: The article contains spoilers. Readers' discretion is advised.

Jennifer Love Hewitt may not like to watch horror movies, but admires what they represent.

In the same interview with Variety, Jennifer Love Hewitt discussed the genre that has consistently used this trope since its inception in the 20th century. She stated:

"I don’t love to watch horror movies because they really scare me. But I do root for horror movies in one very big way: On television and in movies, women have had to fight extra hard to be seen as natural bad-asses; fighters; feral animals with great strength, characters that can be ugly and that you can root for all at the same time, who can be complicated, and all those things."

"We have had to kick and scream and fight for those roles everywhere else, but never in horror movies. And I just love that about horror movies," she added.

So, even if Hewitt doesn't love to watch these movies, she appreciates what they represent in this context. In the new film, her character, Julie James, helps a group of twenty-somethings find a copycat killer. By the end, she realizes that it is none other than her former husband, Ray.

In the previous film, Ray was the one who accidentally hit a man with his car, and Julie was silenced from calling the authorities on this accident. So, 27 years later, she confronted Ray in the film's last few shots.

Jennifer Love Hewitt found it cathartic for her character. Watch her help the Gen-Z group of friends protect themselves from a killer in the new reboot.

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The new I Know What You Did Last Summer sequel is out in theaters now.

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