Just like her middle name, Jennifer Love Hewitt adores keeping fans speculating about her return to the I Know What You Did Last Summer franchise. Following comments at the end of November that she and the studio were “so close” to coming to some sort of agreement about the return of her character, Julie James, she’s dropped another breadcrumb along the trail. During a chat with the titular podcast host on a recent installment of I’ve Never Said This Before With Tommy DiDario, The Hollywood Reporter reveals that Hewitt has some “exciting” news on the horizon – maybe, possibly. Opening up about the Jennifer Kaytin Robinson-helmed production, Hewitt said, “I am possibly preparing for that. I am so close to being able to say something that’s exciting.”

We know that filming is currently underway on the title which will serve as the latest installment in the slasher franchise first kicked off by director Jim Gillespie in 1997. With this in mind, it’s clear that the character of Julie James has already been penned into the script or is out completely, with Hewitt confirming the former. Keeping things as vague as possible, the 9-1-1 actress alluded to the idea that a contract has yet to have been signed, meaning that – while Julie James may appear or at the very least be mentioned – it doesn’t necessarily need to be her playing the part.

However Julie James’ appearance is penned in the upcoming film, it sounds like it will do right by the character, which, in turn, will do right by the fandom. Hewitt explained,

“It has only been scheduling and me trying to make sure that if I go back to the franchise, I just don’t want to be the ghost of ’90s past. I really want to do something, and I want to be there for Julie James fans… I just want it to feel like, you know, if she comes back then it means something.”

With full trust in Robinson and her creative team, we’re fully into the vibes of the ghost of ’90s past, and are beyond certain that the writers have found the perfect way to weave Julie back into the story.

Who Else Will Return For ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’?

The original film saw an absolutely ’90s stacked cast that included Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Freddie Prinze Jr., and Ryan Phillippe attempting to stay alive after a man – who they thought they killed in a hit and run – comes back for vengeance. At this point, we know that Prinze Jr. is set to reprise his role from the first two films as Ray Bronson, with his wife and former co-star, Gellar, (whose character was offed in the original movie) teasing fans about her return. In the sequel, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, more names were added to the call sheet (you’ve gotta replace the deceased!), with the likes of Brandy Norwood, Jack Black, and Mekhi Phifer joining the cast. Fans have been patiently waiting for the hopeful return of Norwood, with Hewitt saying that she had “heard” of talks that brought up the singer’s name.

She was also hoping for Black’s return revealing, “My first thought was, ‘We have to have Jack Black,’ and then I was like, ’Oh no, he died.’”

Whatever the decision is for Hewitt’s possible return as Julie James, it will be made clear in the approaching days as the movie is due out in cinemas on July 18, 2025.

via Collider