Director: Betty Thomas
As tasty as a quart of s'mores, John Tucker Must Die is a slumber-party classic that belongs on the same shelf as Bring It On and 10 Things I Hate About You.
This film will always hold a special place in my heart because it was the very first studio feature I cut as sole editor. I am in deep gratitude to Betty Thomas, who pushed the studio to allow me to take the editorial helm, and to Ted Gagliano at Fox for being so so supportive of a fledgling editor.
A few years ago I began to notice that in every class I taught at AFI, many of the students had seen the film on video when they were high schoolers. Come to find out, John Tucker Must Die has achieved a degree of “cult classic.” It’s nice to know that it stands the test of time with young viewers!
My assistant editor, the unflappable Warren Paeff, myself (fg), and our vintage editorial equipment in 2005.