HIGH SCHOOL HORROR
IN 1988, HEATHERS PRESENTED A VERY DARK TAKE ON THE HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE, AND NOW A NEW TV REBOOT IS SET TO DO THE SAME
Set in a fictitious Ohio high school, Heathers tells the story of Veronica Sawyer (Winona Ryder), who is taken in by queen bee Heather Chandler (Kim Walker). With sidekicks Heather Duke (Shannen Doherty) and Heather Mcnamara (Lisanne Falk), Chandler rules the school, making everyone’s life a living hell. When Veronica meets new boy JD (Christian Slater), the pair plot to take down the Heathers – and things get progressively more complicated … and deadly.
As well as showcasing the talents of Ryder and Slater, the film went to places few teen films were prepared to go at the time. Aside from the poisoning and shootings that take place, sexuality, bullying, suicide and bulimia are all addressed with a dark, cynical eye – entirely the point, according to screenwriter Daniel Waters.
“The high school films that I was seeing lacked a certain something,” he told the Money into Light blog recently. “The parents were always to blame. The kids were always innocent … I wanted to take a step back and take a darker, more epic, cynical, satirical approach.”
At the time, the film only did moderately at the box office. But in the years to come, it would achieve cult status, becoming one of the era’s biggest video-rental successes. It even spawned a Broadway musical – and now a 2018 TV reboot.
In the opening moments of the revival, we’re treated to a cameo by Doherty, red scrunchie and all, but she isn’t playing a more mature Heather Duke since this new take on Heathers isn’t a sequel, it’s more a do-over. And the nods to the film come thick and fast, even if things are slightly different at Westerburg High this time.
Although the three central Heathers still rule the school (and have taken Veronica under their wing), this time Heather Chandler (Melanie Field) is a “body-positive,”“woke” high-schooler, who patrols the school with a PC iron fist – slutshamers, fat-shamers and cultural appropriators beware! Her offsiders are faux-lesbian Heather Mcnamara (Jasmine Mathews) and “genderqueer” Heather Duke (Brendan Scannell).
Fans of the movie will enjoy picking up on all the references – from slabs of dialogue to items in vending machines – peppered throughout. “This show is like a love letter to the original movie,” showrunner Jason Micallef told E! Online. “There’s so many little Easter eggs in each episode, even little things hidden in the set.”
Originally slated to premiere in February, the new Heathers was delayed following the Valentine’s Day shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. Although rescheduled, its US producers ultimately decided not to air a show that dealt with high-school bloodshed. It will air internationally, including in Australia, where it debuts on Stan, on Sept. 28.