I Know What You Did Last Summer

2025   Sony pictures

Rated:  R

Length:  1 hr  51min

Horror ~ Slasher

Directed by:  Jennifer Kaytin Robinson

Starring:  Madelyn Cline, Chase Sui Wonders, Jonah Hauer-King, Tyriq Withers, Sarah Pidgeon, Billy Campbell, Gabbriette Bechtel, Austin Nichols, Freddie Prinze Jr., and Jennifer Love Hewitt.

Karma Is A Killer

On July 4th, Ava Brucks (Chase Sui Wonders) returns to her hometown of Southport, North Carolina, for her best friend Danica Richards’ ( Madelyn Cline) engagement party. The group, including Ava’s ex, Milo Griffin (Jonah Hauer-King), Danica’s fiancé, Teddy Spencer (Tyriq Withers), and Stevie Ward (Sarah Pidgeon), recently out of rehab, drive to watch the fireworks, but their night turns disastrous when Teddy causes a car driven by Sam Cooper to swerve off a cliff. At Teddy’s insistence, the friends agree to cover up the accident, recruiting Teddy’s politician father (Billy Campbell) to handle the fallout.​

A year later, Ava returns to Southport for Danica’s bridal shower, and relationships are fraught. Danica and Teddy have broken up and Danica is now engaged to Wyatt (Joshua Orpin). Tensions resurface as the group tries to reconnect, but the past isn’t buried, during the shower, Danica receives a chilling note “I know what you did last summer.” Suspecting Teddy may be responsible, the group confronts him on his father’s boat, only to find he’s spiraling into alcoholism and denies sending the message.​

That night, Wyatt is murdered by a figure dressed in a slicker and brandishing the Fisherman’s signature hook, staging a grisly tableau and scrawling “You can’t erase the past” in blood. As panic and suspicion grow, Ava and her friends are pursued by the killer. A true crime podcaster, Tyler Trevino (Gabbriette Bechtel), researching the infamous Ben Willis massacre of 1997, is also drawn into the chaos, ultimately falling victim herself when she and Ava are attacked at a crime scene connected to the original killings.​

Desperate for help, the group turns to survivor Julie James (Jennifer Love Hewitt), who believes the new Fisherman killer may have a personal connection to Sam, the accident victim. But with the authorities and townsfolk eager to avoid scandal and maintain their tourist reputation, the friends realize they must face the past and the deadly consequences alone as secrets unravel and trust breaks down

For fans of the original movies I know What You Did Last Summer,  I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer, this one might be a disappointment. It feels more like a nostalgic homage to the originals than another entry into the franchise. The appearance of Freddie Prinze Jr.,  Jennifer Love Hewitt and Brandy Norwood (From I Still Know What You did Last Summer appearing in a Cameo scene after the credits) leave it fully feeling like a nostalgic romp into the past. And yet it feels like it belongs in the franchise, as a marker that that was the past and this is now the direction and the future of the franchise.

There is a scene after the credits roll where Brandy’s character Karla (From I Still Know What You Did Last Summer is watching the news and sees Jennifer Love Hewitt in the story about what just happened in the movie. Then there is a knock at the door and Jennifer is there and explains to Carla as she hands her an envelope, “There is something we have to do….” Perfectly opening the door for another movie in the franchise. It was more comedy than outright Slasher Horror, although it had it’s moments. I did jump on occasion and I laughed and chuckled a lot at some of the dialogue and antics.

Was it worth a watch you ask? Sure, give it a go! ‘Tis the season for Streaming and Screaming!