10 Things You Didn’t Know About Can’t Hardly Wait

In 1998, Can’t Hardly Wait hit the silver screen, drawing in hoards of teen movie goers to watch the party of the year play out amid last chances at love, new friendships and unexpected couplings. Sure we all want to end up with our own Preston Meyers, but crushing aside, here are 10 facts you probably didn’t know about this ’90s cult classic!

1. The movie was originally titled, The Party.

2. Ethan Embry barely remembers filming because he was stoned almost the entire time.

3. The decision to make a movie taking place entirely at one party was made to keep production expenses and challenges low.

4. Jason Segal plays the watermelon guy. Several scenes of his were cut, including one that explains the origin of the watermelon.

5. The Guns N’ Roses song, “Paradise City” wasn’t the original song choice for William Lichter’s singing scene. The director’s first choice was, “Panama” by Van Halen, but they were unable to secure rights to use it.

6. Kenny and Denise getting locked in the bathroom was based on a real-life event that happened at a party thrown by writer-director, Deborah Kaplan.

7. Peter Facinelli won the role of Mike Dexter by walking into the audition and doing push ups.

8. Amanda Beckett’s name wasn’t supposed to be Amanda, but was changed so the directors could play Barry Manilow‘s song, “Mandy” in the movie.

9. Seth Green originally auditioned for the role of nerdy William.

10. The movie was originally rated R, but the inclusion of red cups at the party, helped the rating get dropped to PG-13.