film / tv / substack / social media / lists / web / celeb / pajiba love / misc / about / cbr
film / tv / substack / web / celeb

i-still-know-what-you-did-last-summer-1998-jeffrey-combs-killed-blood-wall.jpg

John Hawkes And 7 Other Actors You Forgot Were In 'I STILL Know What You Did Last Summer'

By Kristy Puchko | Lists | February 2, 2016 |

By Kristy Puchko | Lists | February 2, 2016 |


The other night while channel surfing, I came across I Still Know What You Did Last Summer on SYFY. I stopped for the painfully ’90s fashion (floral overalls 4 eva!), but stayed because holy shit is that John Hawkes!

Yup. Before he was winning critical acclaim and awards for Winter’s Bone, The Sessions and Martha Marcy May Marlene, Hawkes played “Dave,” Freddie Prinze Jr.’s hip but doomed friend who meets the business end of a fish hook in a truck. Because…I guess don’t be friends with someone who may have almost killed a maniac one summer.

Between the overalls and young hip Hawkes, I was hooked. I rewatched this flopped sequel that hastily throws Jennifer Love Hewitt on an isolated island locale, and rediscovered the actors who once gladly collected a paycheck to be in this sloppy slasher from 1998.

Brandy Norwood
snkgnlg.jpg
After Sarah Michelle Gellar bit it in the first film, JHL’s Julie James needed a new cool bestie. Who better than the Moesha star to deal out advice on boys, sex, beach vacations and how to avoid a murderous fisherman?

Mekhi Phifer
fhd008YDL_Mekhi_Phifer_005.jpg
Still a ways away from his 6-year stint on ER and memorable turns in O, 8 Mile and Dawn of the Dead, Phifer played the tough guy who basically thought JLH was a cock-blocking kook.

Bill Cobbs
fhd008YDL_Bill_Cobbs_003.jpg
A storied character actor who made his first appearance in the underrated Walter Mathhau 1974 thriller (yep!) The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, Cobbs brought his signature grumble to a voodoo practicing islander who tries to protect Julie from vengeful foes by setting her toothbrush on fire. Like you do.

Jeffrey Combs
fhd008YDL_Jeffrey_Combs_001.jpg
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer’s best bit of casting was Combs as the red herring hotel manager. His cameo should send a shiver down the backs of horror fans as the guy has been prolific in the genre, appearing in more than 50 horror flicks like The Re-Animator movies, Doctor Morbid, The Pit and the Pendulum, House on Haunted Hill and The Frighteners.

Jennifer Esposito
fhd008ydl_jennifer_esposito_001.jpg
So, you got the sneering hotel manager. You got the voodoo priest. To round out the red herring trifecta, how about this charming Spin City star as a sexy, sassy bartender?

Matthew Settle
matthew-settle-I-Still-Know-What-You-Did-Last-Summer.jpg
He’d go on to appear in such notable series as Band of Brothers, ER, Brothers & Sister and Gossip Girl. But for his film debut, Settle played Will Benson, the Piz to JHL’s amateur sleuth. Except this was more believable, because instead of ending up with her in a fruitful not-creepy relationship for years, I Still Know’s creep just wanted to murder her to bond with his dad. (“Benson. Ben’s son, don’t you get it!”)

Jack Black


Last but not least, we’ve got Black in the midst of his rise from wacky bit player to loony leading man. After Bruce Willis blew him to bits in The Jackal, Black appeared in Johnny Skidmarks, Bongwater and then this zit on the ass of horror. According to IMDB he’s uncredited for his work as dreadlocked pot dealer Titus Telesco. But there’s no mistaking this Tenancious D frontman’s signature silliness.

Kristy Puchko appreciates a tuxedo stripe on board shorts.