The Untold Truth Of The Ferris Bueller TV Series
The Ferris Bueller TV series seemed destined to be a hit. Not only was it based off a classic movie, the show also starred a very famous "Friends" actor! So what went wrong?
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00:00 The Ferris Bueller TV series seemed destined to be a hit.
00:04 Not only was it based off a classic movie, the show also starred a very famous Friends
00:08 actor.
00:09 So, what went wrong?
00:10 John Hughes
00:11 John Hughes defined a generation of cinema for moviegoers.
00:14 From The Breakfast Club to Ferris Bueller's Day Off, the filmmaker created the archetype
00:18 for teen movies in the '80s and early '90s.
00:20 "I've dealt a lot with the problems of being high school age.
00:26 This is about the undiluted joy of being that age."
00:29 As the writer, director, and co-producer of Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Hughes played a
00:34 major role in shaping the final film, and Hughes was so deeply invested in making his
00:38 vision come to reality that he and Matthew Broderick would often get into arguments about
00:43 his acting style.
00:44 Despite the occasional butting of heads, however, Broderick and Hughes stayed in touch, and
00:49 even discussed the possibility of a sequel.
00:51 They even tossed around a few ideas for a second film.
00:54 But when the Ferris Bueller TV series arrived, neither Broderick nor Hughes were involved.
00:59 Instead, John Martius created the sitcom, and served as the showrunner for its only
01:03 season on air.
01:04 Martius is better known for being the creator of Touched by an Angel and Hawthorne.
01:08 The Box Office
01:09 Ferris Bueller's Day Off was made for $5 million, but went on to earn over $70 million at the
01:15 box office.
01:16 These are the kind of numbers that make executives sit up and take notice of the prospect of
01:20 making more money off the franchise.
01:22 However, the people involved in making the TV series underestimated the value of those
01:26 who made the movie, so they decided against bringing them on board.
01:30 For Charlie Schlatter, the star of the sitcom, the series failed because the writers didn't
01:34 gel with the material.
01:36 In an interview with Premium Beat, Schlatter explained,
01:39 "It wasn't very good.
01:40 We had good actors, good directors, and good writers.
01:43 They just weren't the right writers for this project.
01:46 We needed to be doing what they were doing with Parker Lewis, Can't Lose.
01:49 When it ended, I had already emotionally moved on."
01:52 Parker Lewis, Can't Lose was another sitcom that debuted in 1990.
01:56 The series, which starred Coren Nemec as Parker Lewis, holds many similarities with Ferris
02:01 Bueller.
02:02 Both shows followed a popular teenager and his high school friends as they involved themselves
02:06 in all sorts of shenanigans.
02:07 "You're a very dangerous young man."
02:10 "Thank you, Miss Musso.
02:12 Get out."
02:13 Unlike Ferris Bueller, though, Parker Lewis, Can't Lose ran for three seasons.
02:16 Rachel Green
02:17 After she played Rachel Green on Friends, Jennifer Aniston co-starred on the Ferris
02:21 Bueller TV series.
02:22 In the sitcom, Aniston played Ferris' antagonistic sister, Jeannie.
02:26 "That's my sister Jeannie.
02:28 Overreacting.
02:29 Thinks I get away with murder.
02:32 Who's kidding who?
02:33 She has a car and a nose job."
02:35 Despite the sibling rivalry on screen, Aniston and Schlatter were quite smitten with each
02:39 other offscreen.
02:41 Writing for GQ, Jim Nelson, who was a former assistant on the show, spilled the tea on
02:46 the budding romance between Aniston and Schlatter.
02:49 Nelson wrote,
02:50 "Everyone on set thought she was hot, including Schlatter, with whom she had a brief, torrid
02:54 romance while playing, it must be said, his older sister."
02:57 Of course, there's nothing unusual about romances developing between co-stars, regardless of
03:02 which parts they play in the production.
03:04 Their relationship was short-lived, however, and four years later, Schlatter married Colleen
03:09 Gunderson.
03:10 Ferris Bueller's Day Off may have been released nearly 40 years ago, but it's still universally
03:15 loved by critics and fans.
03:16 The film even holds an 82% critical approval rating and 92% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
03:23 The same can't be said about the TV show, though, which holds a 10% critical approval
03:27 rating on the site.
03:28 In its review of the show, The Boston Globe let loose, stating,
03:32 "Broderick's Ferris was the kind of high schooler that other kids would want to hang with.
03:36 Schlatter's is the kind other kids would want to hang."
03:39 Despite receiving mostly bad reviews, however, Ferris Bueller did earn some praise from the
03:43 Los Angeles Times.
03:44 The newspaper found the show to be entertaining enough and Schlatter's portrayal of Ferris
03:48 to be slick and compelling.
03:50 For many fans, the name Bill Bixby is synonymous with the 1977 superhero series The Incredible
03:56 Hulk.
03:57 On the show, Bixby portrays Dr. David Banner, who turns into the terrifying Green Monster.
04:02 While most viewers are familiar with Bixby as Banner, he also appeared in other notable
04:07 TV productions, such as My Favorite Martian.
04:10 In addition to being an actor, Bixby directed numerous TV episodes for a variety of shows,
04:15 including Ferris Bueller.
04:16 The filmmaker helmed the second and eleventh episodes of the series.
04:21 In Ferris Bueller's Day Off, the dean of students, Ed Rooney, serves as a main antagonist.
04:26 Rooney suspects Ferris Bueller is up to no good and wants to take him down a notch, but
04:30 the TV series Richard Reilly takes over the role of Principal Rooney.
04:34 Reilly is a notable and established character actor, having appeared in television shows
04:38 like Grounded for Life.
04:40 He also landed roles in memorable films like Office Space.
04:43 "I have people skills!"
04:45 In an interview with The A.V.
04:46 Club, Reilly revealed that he had never seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off prior to auditioning
04:50 for the series.
04:51 He told the outlet,
04:53 "Up until then, I hadn't seen the movie.
04:55 But as soon as I got the audition, I saw it, and I really liked it."
04:59 Reilly also said that watching the movie helped him prepare for the role of Ed Rooney.
05:03 "You and me, Bueller, are having a farewell party in my office.
05:07 I'm throwing the book at you.
05:09 Say goodbye to Ocean Park High."
05:12 High School is featured predominantly in the storyline of Ferris Bueller, seeing as the
05:16 main focus is Ferris and his teenage friends.
05:18 In 1990, teen shows such as Beverly Hills, 90210, and Parker Lewis Can't Lose were all
05:24 the rage.
05:25 However, teachers of the era felt like many of these shows didn't accurately reflect the
05:29 actual high school experience.
05:31 Mike Morrell, a former high school teacher, told the Los Angeles Times that a lot of these
05:35 shows failed to address what high school kids were actually concerned with.
05:39 He explained how many of his students were worried about their future, which was never
05:42 covered in the shows on television.
05:44 In the same Los Angeles Timepiece, John Marcius explained how the series was intended to be
05:49 breezy entertainment from the get-go.
05:51 He told the newspaper,
05:52 "It's a comedy, a teenage fantasy with adult sensibilities, and not to be taken as anything
05:57 more than that."
05:59 He also defended the protagonist, saying,
06:01 "The show is not mean-spirited.
06:03 Ferris cares about his friends.
06:05 His family.
06:06 He is a good person and he's honest.
06:08 He doesn't take life that seriously."
06:10 No TV actor thinks their show will be canceled after a single season, especially if it's
06:14 based on an established property.
06:16 However, Ferris Bueller was canceled before his final episode aired.
06:20 After a strong debut in August 1990, the ratings plummeted, so the network finally pulled the
06:26 plug in December.
06:27 However, the show's final episode didn't air until August 1991.
06:32 In an interview with Notoday magazine, Richard Realey said he didn't get a call to say the
06:36 show was done.
06:37 He also mentioned how no one in the cast was even aware that the show was in danger of
06:41 being canceled, saying,
06:42 "We didn't even have a wrap party because everyone thought we'd be back after we shot
06:46 our last scenes.
06:48 But things change."
06:49 However, as early as October 1990, the writing was on the wall that the show's days were
06:54 numbered.
06:55 According to Richard Realey, Amy Dolenz wasn't the first choice to play Sloane Peterson in
07:00 the Ferris Bueller TV series.
07:02 He couldn't record the other actor's name he met at the reading, but remembered she
07:05 looked exactly like Mia Sara, who portrayed the character in the movie version.
07:10 Nonetheless, Realey thought Dolenz did a great job as Sloane.
07:13 Much like Realey and the rest of her co-stars, Dolenz's performance would always be compared
07:17 to her counterpart in the movie.
07:19 However, she didn't try to copy Mia Sara's performance.
07:22 Dolenz told PopGeeks,
07:23 "I think I went a different direction.
07:25 Of course I saw the movie.
07:27 I loved it.
07:28 It was a great movie.
07:29 But I did try and make it my own a little bit more.
07:31 I'm not sure what direction that was, but I worked with the actors and talked to the
07:34 directors and producers and just kind of made it my own."
07:38 After starring in Ferris Bueller, Dolenz appeared in straight-to-video films like Tix.
07:43 She also guest-starred on TV shows like Rules of Engagement and Murder, She Wrote.
07:48 Dolenz is the daughter of The Monkees drummer and vocalist Mickey Dolenz.
07:51 Out of all the actors to appear in Ferris Bueller, Jennifer Aniston achieved the most
07:56 success.
07:57 Dolenz's cancellation didn't prevent her from becoming a television icon and a leading
08:00 player in Hollywood.
08:02 And while the Ferris Bueller experience didn't bring her the career boost she may have expected
08:06 at the time, Aniston did channel Jeannie Bueller's attitude in a later performance.
08:11 In the 2016 comedy film Office Christmas Party, Aniston portrayed Carol Vanstone, the interim
08:16 CEO who threatens to lay off a large portion of the company and cancel the Christmas party.
08:22 As a result, branch manager Clay, played by T.J. Miller, concocts a plan to save the employees'
08:27 jobs and hosts the biggest Christmas bash ever.
08:30 In an interview with Vanity Fair, Aniston explained how Carol reminded her a lot of
08:34 Jeannie Bueller.
08:35 She told the magazine,
08:36 "I saw my character like a grown-up version of Jeannie from Ferris Bueller.
08:40 My character and T.J.'s character have this Ferris Bueller all grown-up type of a relationship.
08:45 He's always messing things up and getting away with it, while she never gets a break.
08:49 She has a lot of resentment because of that."
08:52 Jennifer Aniston and her friends' co-stars made headlines when they returned for a reunion
08:55 special in 2021.
08:58 Reunions aren't unusual in the entertainment industry, particularly for sitcoms, seeing
09:02 as they have very loyal audiences.
09:04 However, don't expect to see Aniston clamoring for a Ferris Bueller reunion any time soon.
09:09 When Access Hollywood asked Aniston about the possibility of a Ferris Bueller reunion,
09:13 the actor said,
09:14 "TV version of Ferris Bueller.
09:17 Would we see you guys ever come back and do another reunion or have —"
09:20 "It would be a really absolute no."
09:23 Aniston then went on to give a more thorough explanation as to why she wasn't interested
09:27 in a reunion, saying,
09:28 "I don't even think half of those actors are even still in the business.
09:33 Some of them have left and gone to do other really wonderful, noble things."
09:37 She went on to reiterate that the possibility of a reunion is a hard no from her in terms
09:41 of it ever happening.
09:42 Charlie Schlauter
09:43 Ferris Bueller proved to be Charlie Schlauter's first major TV role.
09:47 While the series failed to become a smash hit, it didn't derail the actor's career.
09:51 Schlauter continued to find regular work, appearing in Diagnosis Murder, Touched by
09:56 an Angel, and the 1994 comedy Police Academy Mission to Moscow.
10:01 However, his biggest success came as a voice actor.
10:04 Schlauter starred in popular animated shows such as The Fairly OddParents and Kim Possible.
10:09 In addition, Schlauter provided the voice for the DC superhero The Flash on numerous
10:14 occasions.
10:15 He showed up as a Scarlet Speedster in Superman the Animated Series, and has continued to
10:19 voice the character in other projects like Justice League Action.
10:22 So how many of Schlauter's co-stars can say they starred in the Ferris Bueller's TV series
10:27 and went on to become a member of the Justice League?
10:29 Well, not even Jennifer Aniston can claim that.
10:32 "I'm not a fan of the Justice League.
10:33 I'm a fan of the Ferris Bueller's TV series.
10:34 I'm a fan of the Justice League.
10:35 I'm a fan of the Ferris Bueller's TV series.
10:36 I'm a fan of the Ferris Bueller's TV series.
10:37 I'm a fan of the Ferris Bueller's TV series.