The latest installment of I Know What You Did Last Summer makes audacious narrative choices that are sure to both divide and thrill fans of the original 1997 film and its follow-up, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer from 1998. This new version reimagines familiar elements while introducing fresh characters and plotlines that keep the suspense alive.

In a surprising turn, even the less popular sequel, which featured Brandy and Mekhi Phifer, is cleverly woven into the narrative of this new film. Directed by the talented Jennifer Kaytin Robinson and co-written by Robinson and Sam Lansky, this movie pays homage to its predecessors while also carving out its own identity.

This time, the storyline centers around a new group of young adults who inadvertently cause another vehicle to plunge off a cliff, resulting in the tragic death of the driver after a night of revelry on the 4th of July. A year later, a vengeful fisherman begins to pick them off one by one, echoing the traumatic experiences of survivors from nearly three decades ago — Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze Jr.’s characters, Julie James and Ray Bronson, are drawn back into this chilling plot.

Throughout the film, young and vibrant characters face gruesome fates; they are strangled, gutted, have their throats slashed, and are speared to death. In an unexpected twist, one of the original cast members makes a shocking cameo that leaves viewers astounded.

Despite previously denying any appearance in the film, Sarah Michelle Gellar — who portrayed Helen Shivers, a character who met her demise after a thrilling chase sequence in the original film — makes a surprising return about two-thirds of the way through the movie.

Her unexpected cameo occurs during a dream sequence involving Madelyn Cline’s character, Danica — a new “Croaker Queen” who embodies the essence of Helen’s character. Clutching the fisherman’s hook and adorned with her beauty queen crown, Helen looms over the body of Danica’s ex on the beauty pageant stage. Danica recognizes her from photographs circulating around town, but after a foreboding warning that Danica and her friends are destined to die for last year’s cover-up, Helen begins to morph into a zombie before Danica jolts awake.

Following this spine-chilling sequence, the film accelerates into its final act, ramping up the suspense and horror elements.

After a series of brutal murders targeting characters played by Joshua Orpin, Gabbriette, Tyriq Withers, Jonah Hauer-King, Austin Nichols, and Billy Campbell, Cline, along with Chase Sui Wonders’ Ava and Sarah Pidgeon’s Stevie, attempt to escape on a boat, hoping to avoid a similar fate. The only hitch? Stevie is revealed to be the fisherman, or at least one of them.

It turns out that the man they accidentally killed the previous year was one of Stevie’s friends, a guy named Sam. This shocking revelation comes to light when his body washes ashore, and Stevie realizes he was on his way to see her when his car tragically veered off the road. The realization that Stevie — who has just come out of rehab — was on the brink of relapse only adds to her devastation. Instead of succumbing to her despair, she turns to murder, methodically eliminating everyone in her former friend group.

In a shocking turn of events, Danica is brutally stabbed and thrown overboard, as Ray arrives just in time to shoot Stevie, sending her into the depths as well.

Is the case finally closed? Absolutely not!

Ava reaches out to Julie once again at Ray’s bar, questioning how Stevie could have acted entirely alone. It suddenly dawns on Hewitt’s character that she didn’t — Stevie had a partner in crime, namely Julie’s ex-husband, Ray. As she races to assist Ava, both characters begin to piece together the horrifying truth.

Ray’s motives are twofold: he had taken on a fatherly role for Stevie after her own father abandoned her, and he was deeply angered by what had transpired in his hometown of Southport. He believed that the town had gone to great lengths to erase the history of the tragic events that occurred back in 1997, effectively rewriting the narrative. In a chilling plot twist, he planned to frame Julie for the new murders, revealing that while Julie transformed her trauma from the earlier killing sprees into a rewarding teaching career, Ray became the very monster he once tried to escape.

As Julie confronts Ray for a final showdown, she delivers one last defiant “What are you waiting for?!” before the two engage in a fierce struggle. In a dramatic twist, Ava takes matters into her own hands and dispatches Ray using his own harpoon.

This bold narrative choice to make one of the original survivors the murderer is likely to frustrate many fans who hold the first two films in high regard. It’s a twist reminiscent of theories circulating among fans of another iconic slasher franchise, Scream, regarding the potential fate of Final Girl Sidney Prescott, played by Neve Campbell. Now that I Know What You Did Last Summer has beat them to this plot device, it’s safe to say that such a twist may never occur in the other franchise — and arguably, should never have been considered in the first place.

In the film’s climactic moments, viewers witness Danica wash ashore, alive and well, only to discover that Stevie has also survived. “Should we kill her?” Danica questions, to which Ava ominously replies, “Probably.”

While we don’t see Stevie in this moment, it’s clear that someone is still lurking in the shadows, poised to target Julie and another familiar face from the past.

In a suspenseful mid-credits scene, viewers see Brandy’s character, Karla, watching news coverage of the latest murder spree. She comments on how someone is always trying to kill her former roommate. Just then, Julie appears at the door, having received a note that ominously reads, “IT’S NOT OVER,” accompanied by a photograph of the two from the 1990s, with Karla’s face crossed out.

“Who are we f–king up this time?” Karla asks, to which Julie responds, “I was really hoping you’d say that,” as the two characters set the stage for a sequel that fans are eager to see unfold.

I Know What You Did Last Summer is currently in theaters.