With the premiere of Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp coming to Netflix this weekend, Entertainment Weekly spoke to the creators at the New York City red carpet premiere for the new series about their realisation of the original movie and box-office failure becoming a beloved cult classic.
Credit: Netflix
Co-creator David Wain said: "It was very gradual. The movie tanked when it came out and nobody bought the DVD at first. And then it was little by little, people were talking about it and I heard about it. I think by two years into it they started having those midnight screenings here in New York. I think that's when I started to realise people care about this. A small group but a loyal, vocal group really cares about this film, and it's just grown and grown since then."
Michael Showalter, co-creator and coop adds: "I would hear about college campuses doing a screening or a midnight show in a city like Portland or Austin. Then I'd hear stories of people going on a date or something, and the people they were on a date with would say, 'Did you like Wet Hot American Summer?', and that would be a litmus test for how well the date was going to go. I could tell from that that it was more than just a movie people liked; it represented something to them.
Actor David Hyde Pierce who portrays Professor Henry Newman in the movie and series said: "Crazy, creepy people telling me how much they liked it" was the moment he noticed just how things had turned around.
"And not just us and the cast, other crazy people. It was a great lesson too about on what it means to succeed in this business. The fact that critics didn't like it and it didn't do well in the end doesn't necessarily mean anything."
Nurse Nancy actress Nina Hellman explains: "As far as I remember we went to Sundance and nobody wanted it. You know what it was, I have two younger stepbrothers, and they and their friends started to get obsessed with it and love it. I was like, 'Huh, okay.' It was really a couple years after.
Marisa Ryan who plays Abby Bernstein says that she thought it did well and she didn't ever know that it wasn't a huge movie.
"And then little by little, a year later, people would recognise me who I thought were too young to have seen the movie. Like, oh they're just seeing it now. It just kept building and building."
And finally, Zak Orth who portrays J.J. said: "I don't remember when the exact moment was once it was out there and happening, but I do know, I'll swear to the fact that I felt like that was its fate from the time that we were making it. I didn't think it was gonna be a big blockbuster, 2000-screen release, but I knew it was going to get seen somehow. 'Cause I wanted to see it."
He added: "My favourite part of coming back was the very first shot of the very first day. We all showed up in our dumb wigs and everything like no time had passed. It clicked immediately. It was wonderful."
Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp will begin streaming this Friday, July 31 on Netflix in all territories where the service is available.