Freddie Prinze Jr. describes his experience filming in 1997 “I know what you did last summer“like it was a horror movie.
Prinze went into detail about how much of a “jerk” director Jim Gillespie was on the set of the 1997 slasher in an interview with TooFab. published on Tuesday.
However, despite all of Prinze’s claims against the director, he also admitted that in hindsight he is grateful for the terrible working conditions because they “prepared me for this business in a way.”
“I’m forever grateful to Jim for being such a jerk because I haven’t met one since,” Prinze told TooFab. “No other director I’ve ever met felt it would be okay to cross those lines. I’ve prepared for every little A-hole in the business.”
“,”type”:”video”,”meta”:{“author”:”toofab”,”author_url”:”https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrJWWrN-jsSau3Kmb1WUeCw”,”cache_age”:86400,”description”:”The actor opens up about his \”miserable\” experience filming the 1997 film, how wife and costar Sarah Michelle Gellar reacted to a recent rewatch and his new horror movie podcast, That Was Pretty Scary.”,”options”:{“_cc_load_policy”:{“label”:”Closed captions”,”value”:false},”_end”:{“label”:”End on”,”placeholder”:”ex.: 11, 1m10s”,”value”:””},”_start”:{“label”:”Start from”,”placeholder”:”ex.: 11, 1m10s”,”value”:”688″},”click_to_play”:{“label”:”Hold load & play until clicked”,”value”:false}},”provider_name”:”YouTube”,”thumbnail_height”:720,”thumbnail_url”:”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/aQxKGkPAl3s/maxresdefault.jpg”,”thumbnail_width”:1280,”title”:”Why Freddie Prinze Jr. Almost Left Hollywood After I Know What You Did Last Summer | toofab”,”type”:”video”,”url”:”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQxKGkPAl3s”,”version”:”1.0″},”flags”:[],”enhancements”:{},”fullBleed”:false,”options”:{“theme”:”news”,”device”:”desktop”,”editionInfo”:{“id”:”us”,”name”:”U.S.”,”link”:”https://www.huffpost.com”,”locale”:”en_US”},”slideshowAd”:{“scriptTags”:[],”otherHtml”:””},”slideshowEndCard”:{“scriptTags”:[],”otherHtml”:””},”isMapi”:false,”isAmp”:false,”isVideoEntry”:false,”isMt”:false,”entryId”:”6413424de4b01ea5cd8cc8b5″,”entryPermalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/entry/freddie-prinze-jr-near-death-experience-ahole-director_n_6413424de4b01ea5cd8cc8b5″,”entryTagsList”:”movies,freddie-prinze-jr,i-know-what-you-did-last-summer,jim-gillespie”,”sectionSlug”:”entertainment”,”deptSlug”:”entertainment”,”sectionRedirectUrl”:”https://www.huffpost.com/entertainment”,”subcategories”:”celebrity,tv”,”isWide”:false,”headerOverride”:null,”noVideoAds”:false,”disableFloat”:false,”isNative”:false,”commercialVideo”:{“provider”:”custom”,”site_and_category”:”us.entertainment”,”package”:null},”isHighline”:false,”vidibleConfigValues”:{“cid”:”60afc111dcf87c2cd2f5d8bf”,”overrides”:{“front_page_top_videos”:{“desktop”:”60b64354b171b7444beaff4d”,”mobileweb”:”60b64354b171b7444beaff4d”},”top_media”:{“desktop”:”60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147″,”mobile”:”60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee”,”iphone”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”ipad”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”androidphone”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”androidtablet”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”},”anthology”:{“desktop”:”60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba”,”mobile”:”60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66″,”iphone”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”ipad”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”androidphone”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”androidtablet”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”},”content”:{“desktop”:”60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba”,”mobile”:”60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66″,”iphone”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”ipad”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”androidphone”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”androidtablet”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”}},”playerUpdates”:{“5668ae6ee4b0b5e26955d6a6″:”60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443″,”56aa41bae4b091744c0440d8″:”60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81″,”5841b2b5cc52c716ec6e5a7f”:”60b8e355cdd90620331ba185″,”58b5e2b8d85a10302feee895″:”60b64316b171b7444beafdb2″,”58b74698f78ced31417819ae”:”60b8e5bec5449357a7ad9b52″,”58b74ccecebcea57e2c3a3d1″:”60b8e5eac5449357a7ad9ca5″,”58cff690d85a100b9992bc39″:”60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba”,”58cffb3fb6d9b972a49a3c9d”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”58cffdd74d96935d7d6ec180″:”60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66″,”58d03a84f78ced6518eb2fa7″:”60b643c82e76be41f112735c”,”592edf20e0fa177b0c26f7fd”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”5b35266b158f855373e28256″:”60b64354b171b7444beaff4d”,”5c116f29f79c4171d82b7c2a”:”60b64440b171b7444beb040b”,”5c1170fc600c9a697bf0c6b9″:”60b646102e76be41f1127ffc”,”5c47791afa1b317df8ae0c4f”:”60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147″,”5c477987a6b48b35f164773d”:”60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee”,”5c4779ee943c3c2a64f28371″:”60b8e747cdd90620331bb861″,”5c477a26fcd67b26879bc7c2″:”60b8e788c5449357a7ada67b”,”5d8921a78c3ae845f366c9b6″:”60ae7be5f3a7c13a30417ff9″,”58b98b00ba82aa39a6534321″:”60d0de7c9340d7032ad1146c”,”58b9d14cb6d9b96c9ec32af3″:”60d0dec19340d7032ad115a0″,”58cff8eccebcea42931e0436″:”60d0e005b627221e9d819d44″,”592edf5de0fa177b0c26f95b”:”60d0e38fb627221e9d81adcf”,”58cff72fd85a100b9992c112″:”60d0e447b627221e9d81b0da”,”56b4d34fe4b022697697c400″:”60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443″,”60b8e4c0c5449357a7ad957d”:”60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81″}},”connatixConfigValues”:{“defaultPlayer”:”ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b”,”clickToPlayPlayer”:”d014396e-b366-4c17-aeac-3ce906fa3fd0″,”videoPagePlayer”:”f010447b-d244-4111-a314-7b4542ae4145″,”verticalPlayer”:”e58cb05a-0bc8-4210-9108-fea82726c065″},”customAmpComponents”:[],”ampAssetsUrl”:”https://amp.assets.huffpost.com”,”videoTraits”:null,”positionInUnitCounts”:{“buzz_head”:{“count”:0},”buzz_body”:{“count”:0},”buzz_bottom”:{“count”:0}},”positionInSubUnitCounts”:{“article_body”:{“count”:3},”blog_summary”:{“count”:0},”before_you_go_slideshow”:{“count”:0}},”connatixCountsHelper”:{“count”:0},”buzzfeedTracking”:{“context_page_id”:”6413424de4b01ea5cd8cc8b5″,”context_page_type”:”buzz”,”destination”:”huffpost”,”mode”:”desktop”,”page_edition”:”en-us”},”tags”:[{“name”:”Movies”,”slug”:”movies”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/movies”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/movies”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/movies”},”relegenceSubjectId”:981358,”department”:{“name”:”Entertainment”,”slug”:”entertainment”},”section”:{“title”:”Entertainment”,”slug”:”entertainment”},”topic”:{“title”:”Movies”,”slug”:”movies”,”overridesSectionLabel”:false},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/entertainment/topic/movies”},{“name”:”Freddie Prinze Jr. “,”slug”:”freddie-prinze-jr”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/freddie-prinze-jr”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/freddie-prinze-jr”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/freddie-prinze-jr”},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/freddie-prinze-jr”},{“name”:”I Know What You Did Last Summer”,”slug”:”i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”},{“name”:”jim gillespie”,”slug”:”jim-gillespie”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/jim-gillespie”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/jim-gillespie”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/jim-gillespie”},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/jim-gillespie”}],”isLiveblogLive”:null,”cetUnit”:”buzz_body”,”bodyAds”:[“
Prinze claims in his interview that Gillespie gave him “psychotic notes,” such as “Keep your mouth open. You look stupid when you do that.”
He said the director was so rude to him on set because writer Kevin Williamson and the studio wanted him in the role of Ray, but Gillespie preferred actor Jeremy Sisto. Prinze said Gillespie “made no bones” about his disdain for being cast over Sisto.
“There was no passive aggressiveness – which I hate – he was very direct about the fact that ‘I don’t want you in this movie,'” the actor said.
Gillespie says otherwise about Prinze’s casting. He told Digital Spy in 2017 that he fought to get the role.
“No one wanted Freddy. they thought he was too soft, not muscular enough, so Freddie probably screen tested four or five times,” Gillespie said at the time. “He got to the point where he was like ‘I’m done’ and I had to really beg him to stay with it because I wanted him to.”
Gillespie did not respond Thursday to HuffPost’s request for comment for this story.
Despite claims to the contrary, Prinze said, Gillespie tended to single him out, leaving him “in pain” and making it a “struggle to get the job done” every day.
“I wanted to fight this guy two or three different times. “One time I felt it was a legitimate reason, and the other two times I got pissed off, which is not right,” the actor admitted.
That one legitimate reason might have been a “near-death experience” that Prinze mentioned took place during filming.
On Wednesday’s episode of his “That Was Pretty Scary” podcast, which focuses on the horror genre, Prinze detailed a stunt on the set of “I Know What You Did Last Summer” that went wrong.
The actor said they were filming the film’s boat scene — in which Prinze’s character Ray jumps from speedboat to fishing boat to save Jennifer Love Hewitt’s character Julie (watch it below).
“,”type”:”video”,”meta”:{“author”:”Crime City”,”author_url”:”https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-EAAZq8FySRsFKcc7wMXIA”,”cache_age”:86400,”description”:”In this final showdown, Julie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and Ray (freddie Prinze Jr.) finally come face to face with the mysterious fisherman who has terrorized and pursued them.\n\nWatch the full movie!\nhttps://play.google.com/store/movies/details/I_Know_What_You_Did_Last_Summer?id=-JiZcrEqReg\n\nJennifer Love Hewitt (from TV’s \”Party of Five\”) and Sarah Michelle Gellar (Scream 2) star with Freddie Prinze, Jr., Ryan Phillippe and Johnny Galecki in this terrifying tale of a body that just won’t stay dead. After an accident on a winding road, four teens make the fatal mistake of dumping their victim’s body into the sea. But exactly one year later, the dead man returns from his watery grave, and he’s looking for more than an apology. From the writer of SCREAM.\n\n#IKnowWhatYoudDidLastSummer #JenniferLoveHewitt #FreddiePrinzeJr #CrimeCity #CrimeMovie #HDClips”,”options”:{“_cc_load_policy”:{“label”:”Closed captions”,”value”:false},”_end”:{“label”:”End on”,”placeholder”:”ex.: 11, 1m10s”,”value”:””},”_start”:{“label”:”Start from”,”placeholder”:”ex.: 11, 1m10s”,”value”:”127″},”click_to_play”:{“label”:”Hold load & play until clicked”,”value”:false}},”provider_name”:”YouTube”,”thumbnail_height”:720,”thumbnail_url”:”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/exbuUIxx4jM/maxresdefault.jpg”,”thumbnail_width”:1280,”title”:”I Know What You Did Last Summer | The Fisherman Reveals Himself (Jennifer Hewitt, Freddie Prinze Jr)”,”type”:”video”,”url”:”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exbuUIxx4jM”,”version”:”1.0″},”flags”:[],”enhancements”:{},”fullBleed”:false,”options”:{“theme”:”news”,”device”:”desktop”,”editionInfo”:{“id”:”us”,”name”:”U.S.”,”link”:”https://www.huffpost.com”,”locale”:”en_US”},”slideshowAd”:{“scriptTags”:[],”otherHtml”:””},”slideshowEndCard”:{“scriptTags”:[],”otherHtml”:””},”isMapi”:false,”isAmp”:false,”isVideoEntry”:false,”isMt”:false,”entryId”:”6413424de4b01ea5cd8cc8b5″,”entryPermalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/entry/freddie-prinze-jr-near-death-experience-ahole-director_n_6413424de4b01ea5cd8cc8b5″,”entryTagsList”:”movies,freddie-prinze-jr,i-know-what-you-did-last-summer,jim-gillespie”,”sectionSlug”:”entertainment”,”deptSlug”:”entertainment”,”sectionRedirectUrl”:”https://www.huffpost.com/entertainment”,”subcategories”:”celebrity,tv”,”isWide”:false,”headerOverride”:null,”noVideoAds”:false,”disableFloat”:false,”isNative”:false,”commercialVideo”:{“provider”:”custom”,”site_and_category”:”us.entertainment”,”package”:null},”isHighline”:false,”vidibleConfigValues”:{“cid”:”60afc111dcf87c2cd2f5d8bf”,”overrides”:{“front_page_top_videos”:{“desktop”:”60b64354b171b7444beaff4d”,”mobileweb”:”60b64354b171b7444beaff4d”},”top_media”:{“desktop”:”60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147″,”mobile”:”60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee”,”iphone”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”ipad”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”androidphone”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”androidtablet”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”},”anthology”:{“desktop”:”60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba”,”mobile”:”60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66″,”iphone”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”ipad”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”androidphone”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”androidtablet”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”},”content”:{“desktop”:”60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba”,”mobile”:”60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66″,”iphone”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”ipad”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”androidphone”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”androidtablet”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”}},”playerUpdates”:{“5668ae6ee4b0b5e26955d6a6″:”60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443″,”56aa41bae4b091744c0440d8″:”60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81″,”5841b2b5cc52c716ec6e5a7f”:”60b8e355cdd90620331ba185″,”58b5e2b8d85a10302feee895″:”60b64316b171b7444beafdb2″,”58b74698f78ced31417819ae”:”60b8e5bec5449357a7ad9b52″,”58b74ccecebcea57e2c3a3d1″:”60b8e5eac5449357a7ad9ca5″,”58cff690d85a100b9992bc39″:”60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba”,”58cffb3fb6d9b972a49a3c9d”:”60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6″,”58cffdd74d96935d7d6ec180″:”60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66″,”58d03a84f78ced6518eb2fa7″:”60b643c82e76be41f112735c”,”592edf20e0fa177b0c26f7fd”:”60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c”,”5b35266b158f855373e28256″:”60b64354b171b7444beaff4d”,”5c116f29f79c4171d82b7c2a”:”60b64440b171b7444beb040b”,”5c1170fc600c9a697bf0c6b9″:”60b646102e76be41f1127ffc”,”5c47791afa1b317df8ae0c4f”:”60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147″,”5c477987a6b48b35f164773d”:”60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee”,”5c4779ee943c3c2a64f28371″:”60b8e747cdd90620331bb861″,”5c477a26fcd67b26879bc7c2″:”60b8e788c5449357a7ada67b”,”5d8921a78c3ae845f366c9b6″:”60ae7be5f3a7c13a30417ff9″,”58b98b00ba82aa39a6534321″:”60d0de7c9340d7032ad1146c”,”58b9d14cb6d9b96c9ec32af3″:”60d0dec19340d7032ad115a0″,”58cff8eccebcea42931e0436″:”60d0e005b627221e9d819d44″,”592edf5de0fa177b0c26f95b”:”60d0e38fb627221e9d81adcf”,”58cff72fd85a100b9992c112″:”60d0e447b627221e9d81b0da”,”56b4d34fe4b022697697c400″:”60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443″,”60b8e4c0c5449357a7ad957d”:”60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81″}},”connatixConfigValues”:{“defaultPlayer”:”ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b”,”clickToPlayPlayer”:”d014396e-b366-4c17-aeac-3ce906fa3fd0″,”videoPagePlayer”:”f010447b-d244-4111-a314-7b4542ae4145″,”verticalPlayer”:”e58cb05a-0bc8-4210-9108-fea82726c065″},”customAmpComponents”:[],”ampAssetsUrl”:”https://amp.assets.huffpost.com”,”videoTraits”:null,”positionInUnitCounts”:{“buzz_head”:{“count”:0},”buzz_body”:{“count”:0},”buzz_bottom”:{“count”:0}},”positionInSubUnitCounts”:{“article_body”:{“count”:3},”blog_summary”:{“count”:0},”before_you_go_slideshow”:{“count”:0}},”connatixCountsHelper”:{“count”:0},”buzzfeedTracking”:{“context_page_id”:”6413424de4b01ea5cd8cc8b5″,”context_page_type”:”buzz”,”destination”:”huffpost”,”mode”:”desktop”,”page_edition”:”en-us”},”tags”:[{“name”:”Movies”,”slug”:”movies”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/movies”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/movies”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/movies”},”relegenceSubjectId”:981358,”department”:{“name”:”Entertainment”,”slug”:”entertainment”},”section”:{“title”:”Entertainment”,”slug”:”entertainment”},”topic”:{“title”:”Movies”,”slug”:”movies”,”overridesSectionLabel”:false},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/entertainment/topic/movies”},{“name”:”Freddie Prinze Jr. “,”slug”:”freddie-prinze-jr”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/freddie-prinze-jr”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/freddie-prinze-jr”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/freddie-prinze-jr”},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/freddie-prinze-jr”},{“name”:”I Know What You Did Last Summer”,”slug”:”i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer”},{“name”:”jim gillespie”,”slug”:”jim-gillespie”,”links”:{“relativeLink”:”topic/jim-gillespie”,”permalink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/jim-gillespie”,”mobileWebLink”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/jim-gillespie”},”url”:”https://www.huffpost.com/topic/jim-gillespie”}],”isLiveblogLive”:null,”cetUnit”:”buzz_body”,”bodyAds”:[“
About 46 minutes into the podcast episode, Prinze prefaced his story by saying that during his audition, he was asked if he knew how to drive a speedboat, which he did. But he was surprised to discover that the speedboat he was to drive in the film was actually “a dinghy” or “a rowboat, like pirates would be” with an “outboard motor”.
The actor recalled that on the night of filming in the Atlantic Ocean, the water was “turbulent” and made “even more turbulent” by the actual speedboats zipping around the camera. Prinze, who described himself as “a 21-year-old kid with no stunt experience” at the time, recalled being “worried” and that “everything felt wrong” about the conditions. He said he asked if the film’s stunt coordinator had signed off on it and was told yes.
But Prinze still had his reservations. He said he asked to rehearse the scene before actually shooting it – especially since his character was supposed to be chasing the fishing boat pass.
The actor said Gillespie agreed to a rehearsal, but then switched to shooting the scene once rehearsal began.
When it hit the fishing boat, Prinze recounted, “the boat goes airborne, goes almost upside down, throws me out, lands on its belly – and the engine is still running – goes right over my head.”
“I don’t feel the propellers, per se,” he said, “but I can feel the movement of the water from the propellers – it’s a distinct sensation.”
The shot failed miserably, Prinze said, and he “pissed off” after nearly being run over by the boat’s engine.
“I’m ashamed, I’m scared, I’m angry, like a lot of things are going through me at that moment,” he recalls.
After the incident, Prinze demanded to speak to the stunt coordinator and was shocked to learn that the stunt coordinator had been sent home because “they didn’t want to pay him overtime.”
Prinze said he expected an apology from Gillespie after the incident, but was reprimanded and told he “ruined the shot.” Gillespie then demanded that he reshoot the stunt, according to Prinze, who said he left for his trailer and was ready to stop filming and act altogether because of what had happened.
Prinze said the film’s producer talked him into it and eventually a stuntman performed the stunt.
The actor told TooFab that he’s glad he didn’t stop filming — and acting altogether — after his near death.
“I’m not upset because this movie launched my whole career,” Prinze said. “I wouldn’t have any of what I have without this movie. I wouldn’t have my wife [his “I Know What You Did Last Summer” co-star Sarah Michelle Gellar]I wouldn’t have all the other films I’ve done.”