TV and film starJennifer Love Hewittdominated Hollywood in the ‘90s and 2000s, memorably starring in the slasherI Know What You Did Last Summer.The gifted actress made her screen debut in the 1989 children’s programKids Incorporatedbefore taking over Tinseltown with roles in hit shows likeParty of Fiveand in movies includingSister Act 2: Back in the Habit,Can’t Hardly Wait,Heartbreakers, and the aforementioned horror staple.
Hewitt continued to find success with dynamic performances inGhost Whisperer,The Client List, andCriminal Mindsand currently stars on the popular procedural drama series9-1-1as operator Maddie Buckley. Witha decorated careerspanning over thirty years, the actress has been nominated for numerous accolades like a Golden Globe and has won a People’s Choice Award and two Saturn Awards. Let’s take a look back at Jennifer Love Hewitt’s best performances.
10The Audrey Hepburn Story
Jennifer Love Hewitt starred as the titular legendaryHollywood cinema greatin the 2000 biographical dramaThe Audrey Hepburn Story. It chronicles the silver screen icon’s fascinating life from her harrowing experiences during World War II in Britain and the Netherlands to her illustrious film career and takeover of Tinseltown in the ensuing decades.
The engrossing picture leads up to Hepburn shooting the acclaimed romantic comedyBreakfast at Tiffany’sand features additional performances by Emmy Rossum and Sarah Hyland as younger versions of the actress and was a ratings success upon its television debut.
In the 2004 romantic fantasy dramaIf Only, heartbroken British businessman Ian Wyndham (Paul Nicholls) desperately tries to save the life of his free-spirited girlfriend Samantha Andrews (Hewitt) after she is tragically killed following a heated argument, as the grief-stricken man is given a second chance to relive the day and prevent the devastating accident. The tender and thought-provoking picture featured winning performances by its endearing leads and tugged on the heartstrings of audiences everywhere, even though critics felt it was a little too much on the sappy side.
8Criminal Minds
Jennifer Love Hewitt joined the tenth season of the fan-favorite crime drama seriesCriminal Mindsportraying FBI special agent Kate Callahan, who has eight years of experience with the agency and arrives at the BAU after the departure of linguistics expert Dr. Alex Blake. After losing her sister and brother-in-law in the September 11 attacks, Kate became the legal guardian of her niece Meg and raised the child for thirteen years with her husband Chris before relocating to Quantico, Virginia.
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This show gave the audience a larger view into the daily dealings of a precinct, showing the diverse types of detectives involved in solving cases.
Kate is caring and wise and fits right in with her fellow BAU agents, efficiently working with the team until she decides to take some much-needed time off to prepare for the birth of her baby and spend time with her family after her niece was kidnapped by human traffickers. Hewitt leftthe chilling programafter one season after she herself became pregnant with her second child, opting to take a three-year break from acting to focus on her personal life.
7The Client List
In the 2010 Lifetime television filmThe Client List, Hewitt appears as desperate mother and wife Samantha Horton, who in order to come up with some crucial money for her family takes on a job at a massage parlor, only to make the shocking discovery it is actually a house of prostitution. Samantha quickly becomes the customers' go-to employee and she is relieved to be able to provide an abundance of funds for her loved ones, but finds keeping her two worlds separate that much more difficult to juggle.
The Client Listwas a massive success upon its debut, attracting an audience of3.9 million viewerswhile earning Hewitt a Golden Globe nomination for her complex portrayal of the housewife-turned-prostitute. Due to its passionate fan-following, Lifetime ordered a television series based on the film that Hewitt starred in and produced, running for two seasons from 2012 to 2013.
After her hiatus from Hollywood, Jennifer Love Hewitt returned to the entertainment world when she joined the cast of the 2018 procedural drama series9-1-1for its second season, taking on the role of ER nurse and911 operator Maddie Buckleywho moves to Los Angeles after fleeing her abusive husband in order to be closer to her firefighter brother Evan “Buck” Buckley (Oliver Stark). When describing her character,Hewitt told Elle, “Maddie has a toughness to her. But she’s also empathetic and sensitive. People will see her composed on the phone, but fully dealing with the pain and anguish of the callers [once she hangs up].”
Despite its positive reception,9-1-1was shockingly canceled by Fox after six seasons but was subsequently picked up by ABC and renewed for a seventh at the network. The gripping program features the additional talents of stars like Angela Bassett, Ryan Guzman, and Peter Krause and spawned the spin-off series9-1-1: Lone Starwhile also winning numerous accolades including a Critics' Choice Award and multiple NAACP Image Awards.
5Heartbreakers
Jennifer Love Hewitt and Sigourney Weaver were the ultimate mother/daughter duo when they headlined the 2001 romantic crime comedyHeartbreakers, in which the lovely ladies star as Page and Max Conners, a pair of con artists who scam wealthy men and seduce them before running off with their money in lucrative cash settlements. After attracting the unwanted attention of the IRS, Page and Max are forced to do one last con in order to pay off their debt and set their sights on a wealthy tobacco tycoon (Gene Hackman) as their mark.
Their seemingly fool-proof plan is compromised when Page becomes attracted to an affluent beach bartender (Jason Lee) and Max is tracked down by a former target, with hilarious chaos naturally ensuing for the scheming mom and daughter.Heartbreakerswas a success at the box office and Hewitt was nominated for a Teen Choice Award for her portrayal of the beautiful yet diabolical Page, while Weaver received a Saturn nod for her equally devious role.
4Can’t Hardly Wait
With a large ensemble cast of then up-and-comers including Ethan Embry, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Seth Green, and Peter Facinelli, the 1998 teen romantic comedyCan’t Hardly Waittakes place at a blowout high school graduation party where artistic outsider Preston Meyers (Embry) hopes to finally admit his feelings for prom queen Amanda Beckett (Hewitt) while nerdy and bullied classmate William Lichter (Charlie Korsmo) plots his revenge against the jocks who terrorized him all throughout his school years.
Hewitt was coming off the massive success of bothParty of FiveandI Know What You Did Last Summerwhen she appeared in the playful flick, with the rom-com helping establish her as one of Hollywood’s most buzzed about actresses.Can’t Hardly Waithas since gone on to become a beloved and underratedhigh school movieand in 2019 Hewitt revealed that she is currently developing a sequel that she intends to direct.
3Ghost Whisperer
In the 2005 supernatural fantasy seriesGhost Whisperer, Hewitt delivered a compelling and heartfelt performance as medium Melinda Gordon. She attempts to live as normal a life as possible with her husband Jim (David Conrad) despite seeing and communicating with ghosts on a regular basis, while also trying to run her popular antique store. Every spirit Melinda comes in contact with seeks out her help to help them complete their unfinished business, and she acts as their earthly advocate to help them cross over and find peace.
In its debut season,Ghost Whispererwas a ratings knockout and averaged around 10.20 million viewers before experiencing a gradual decline in its subsequent four seasons that ultimately resulted in its cancelation in 2010. During its tenure, the drama earned Hewitt numerous accolades like two Saturn Awards, and she has remained vocal about wanting to see a reboot or revival,saying in 2018, “If they’re going to redo it, then I have to go back and be the ghost whisperer because I am not giving up myGhost Whispererthrone. That part just meant too much to me, and it was so much of who I was, I worked really hard to make Melinda who she is.”
2Party of Five
Hewitt became a certified teen idol when she joined the stacked cast of the 1994 family drama juggernaut seriesParty of Five, which follows five diverse siblings as they struggle with the devastating loss of their parents after a tragic car accident, with the Salinger clan working together to raise on another while being watched over by the eldest sibling Charlie (Matthew Fox). Scott Wolf, Neve Campbell, and Lacey Chabert round out the gifted cast, with Hewitt appearing as Sarah Reeves Merrin, the kind-hearted girlfriend of Bailey Salinger (Wolf) who becomes a regular from the second season to its conclusion.
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Party of Fivetackled a wide array of heavy themes and topics including abuse, mental illness, and teen pregnancy, and wasdeclared by TV Guidein 1995 as “The Best Show You’re Not Watching”. The series ran from 1994 to 2000 for six seasons and during its small screen reign won the Golden Globe for Best Television Series - Drama while also helping launch the careers of its exceptional ensemble cast.
1I Know What You Did Last Summer
Hewitt masterfully transitioned from being a television actress to a bona fide Hollywood leading lady when she starred opposite Freddy Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Ryan Phillippe in the 1997 smash hit slasherI Know What You Did Last Summer.
It focuses on a group of teenage friends as they are ruthlessly terrorized and stalked by a mysterious hook-wielding madman after being forever connected by a tragic accident a year before. Hewitt appears as theultimate final girlJulie James, who is reunited with her former high school pals in a North Carolina seaside town after the gang is targeted by a threatening presence, and must fight for her life as the hook-handed maniac picks them off one-by-one.
BothI Know What You Did Last SummerandScreamhelped revitalize the slasher genre and despite a mixed bag response from critics dominated the box office, amassing over $125 million during its run. Hewitt’s fierce performance as Julie was singled out and she would go on to reprise the character in the follow-up sequel, withEntertainment Weekly declaringshe knows how to “scream with soul.”
