Get Over It may not have been a critical or commercial success when it was released in 2001, but thanks to a cast full of future stars, it has become a beloved cult classic for ’90s kids everywhere.
Very loosely based on William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the rom-com centers on Berke Landers (Ben Foster), an incredibly average high schooler whose world is shattered when his girlfriend Allison (Melissa Sagemiller) dumps him. After she moves on with exchange student and former boy band star Striker (Shane West), Berke joins the school’s musical in an attempt to win her back. With the help of his best friends Felix (Colin Hanks) and Dennis (Sisquó) — and Felix’s younger sister, Kelly (Kirsten Dunst) — Berke does his best to get over the breakup and prove his love to Allison once and for all.
The film also stars Martin Short as Dr. Desmond Forrest Oates, a frustrated composer and songwriter who is desperate to get someone to appreciate his genius, and includes cameos from Vitamin C, Coolio and Carmen Electra.
Get Over It‘s unabashed cheesiness and goofy musical numbers not only won over fans, but also appealed to cast members looking to show off their talents. “I have tried to stay away from acting in the typical teen roles. I did Get Over It because of the singing,” Dunst told BBC News in February 2007. “They offered me the role of Allison but I thought my role had more.”
She continued: “I think the last few years the teen power in Hollywood has really gone crazy. When I was younger, teenagers did not work that much.”
Like many classic films from the early 2000s, Get Over It was inspired by a Shakespeare play — and it even features the characters performing a version of Midsummer Night’s Dream with original songs by Dr. Oates. “I guess it is a good way to get people involved with Shakespeare — although our version was much more fun than the original,” Dunst said. “As an actor, you learn about Shakespeare pretty young. I also studied his work in high school.”
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In the decades since Get Over It was released, the cast has been effusive about one another and their talents. “[Kirsten] is a beast of an actor, always has been.” Foster gushed of his on-screen love interest in a November 2011 interview with The Film Experience. “It’s just about the stars aligning for her to really show what she’s got. There’s so much more to come with her. I’m absolutely a silly fan of Kirsten’s.”
Keep scrolling to see how the cast of Get Over It has changed on their road to A-List fame:
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