Ten years after American Pie 2, the original cast of the teen comedy franchise has reunited for the upcoming (and aptly named) American Reunion. A tweeted picture from the set has been making the internet rounds, and reactions have run the gamut — some are inexplicably excited to see the return of Stifler, Finch and the gang, while others have become depressingly aware of their age. Now that Sean Penn has also reunited with his Fast Times at Ridgemont High cast, teen-movie reunions seem destined to become a trend. In anticipation of the deluge, we’ve compiled a list of teen movie casts that we want to see together again (scrunchies and angst optional). Check out our selections after the jump, and be sure to leave your own suggestions in the comments.
Heathers is the earlier, darker, and, dare we say, funnier version of Mean Girls that launched both Winona Ryder and Christian Slater into the limelight. The film is also responsible for some of the most quotable lines in movie history. Since her days of killing jocks and queen bees at Westburg High, Ryder’s career has been anything but simple — following her meteoric rise to fame in the ’90s came a much publicized shoplifting scandal and a long hiatus from acting. Yet, with an appearance in 2009’s high-profile Star Trek reboot and a plum role in Black Swan, it seems Ryder is back on her feet. A Heathers reunion may remind American audiences why we once loved her so much. To be honest, upon hearing that they’re both single, we’re also rooting for a Ryder-Slater romance — despite the relationship’s many flaws, we never did get over the tragic demise of Veronica and J.D.
Empire Records did poorly at the box office, and Roger Ebert called the film a “lost cause.” Yet, despite all this, Empire Records is a cult classic, a film we will never turn off when we stumble upon it while channel surfing. Its story, of a climactic day in the life of young record-store employees, is angsty, self-absorbed, manic, and sexy — everything we aspired to be as teenagers. Some of the film’s stars have found success post-Empire — Renée Zellweger and Liv Tyler have clearly done the best — but it is the characters who disappeared from the mainstream who have us begging for a reunion. Whatever happened to shaggy-haired dreamboat AJ (Johnny Whitworth)? How about Rex Manning (Maxwell Caulfield)? Why does the actress who played Manning’s sassy manager (Debi Mazar) have her own cooking show now? Besides bringing these characters out of hiding, we can only hope an Empire Records reunion will finally get Zellweger singing again.
Before Harry Potter, before TV’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed, there was The Craft. In the film, four outcast girls form a coven of witches, using their new powers for their gain. Of The Craft‘s cast, only Neve Campbell retains name recognition; sadly, time hasn’t treated the other three witches as well. In this era of Twilight, Teen Wolf, and True Blood, The Craft could find a new audience and provide a welcome edge to today’s PG-13 fare. We would be excited to see Fairuza Balk, the actress who played evil witch Nancy, make a comeback — we’ll admit that the character’s dark lips and goth-lite apparel still inspire a few of our wardrobe choices.
Wouldn’t it be nice to trade the one Martin Sheen offspring we keep hearing about for another, just for a little while? Also, a Disney production that brought together a large co-ed group of adolescents is sure to have plenty of hysterical and salacious behind-the-scenes stories. We chose D2 over the original movie not only because we still kind of want to be a Bash Brother, but also because it provided the most memorable characters of the franchise — metal-loving Portman, Southern boy Dwayne, and street-kid Russ, played by none other than SNL‘s Kenan Thompson.< The Outsiders
Francis Ford Coppola’s teen drama was an assemblage of up-and-coming talent, young actors who hadn’t yet found their big break. The film also sparked the “Brat Pack” phenomenon of the 1980s. It is interesting to see how far many of The Outsiders cast members have come — and equally interesting to think about the Greasers who didn’t fare as well. Diane Lane, Rob Lowe, Matt Dillion, Patrick Swayze; all were a part of the small group of actors chosen by Coppola to tell the story of tough, low-income youth. We would love to hear contemporary A-list stars such as Lowe and Lane talk about one of their earliest film experiences and travel back to the time before Tom Cruise was a punchline. An Outsiders reunion would also bring former Karate Kid (and recent Dancing with the Stars contestant) Ralph Macchio and Ponyboy himself, C. Thomas Howell, back into the spotlight, a worthwhile exercise if only to remind us why they didn’t rise along with their co-stars (remember Soul Man?)