If you are a movie junkie, or just a sucker for a good romantic comedy, you surely have seen the 90s hit, “She’s All That,” starring Rachael Leigh Cook and Freddie Prinze Jr. In this classic popular boy and nerdy girl romantic trope, viewers watch the hard exterior of Laney Boggs being broken down by Zack Siler in order for him to not only win a bet, but seek revenge on his ex-girlfriend who publicly humiliated him. This causes an unexpected (yet predictable) bond to form between the unlikely pair. 

Netflix’s remake of the hit film, “He’s All That” attempts to simulate that same bond between an unlikely pair, yet this time the gender roles are flipped. Influential and popular girl Padgett Sawyer, played by Addison Rae, discovers her celebrity boyfriend, played by Peyton Meyer, is cheating on her and is publicly humiliated via livestream. She will do anything to get her status back on track, even if it means taking over the brooding and pessimistic school loser Cameron Kweller, played by Tanner Buchannen, and turning him into Cali High’s next prom king. 

After unsuccessfully trying to win Cameron over, Padgett decides to enlist the help of his younger sister in an attempt to get on his good side and break down his walls. After learning about his love of horses, she shows up at the ranch he works at to take riding lessons and edge her way into his life. As time goes on and they keep hanging out, Padgett starts to get to know the sensitive side of Cameron, and even convinces him to ditch his clothes and cut his hair. Not only is Cameron changing, but the viewers are starting to see the side of Padgett that the media never does. 

In the end, Cameron and Padgett become their best versions of themselves, no longer hiding from each other, and no longer focusing on winning a bet or proving something to the rest of the school. “He’s All That” manages to maintain a classic romantic comedy ending: the protagonists end up together and even some of our supporting characters have the spotlight as well. 

However, despite it’s classic, somewhat cheesy ending, “He’s All That” had its controversies before even hitting Netflix on Aug. 25. Rightfully so, viewers were worried about the remake making a mockery of the original movie, turning it into another Netflix flop with low quality actors and actresses. 

Addison Rae, an influencer from Louisiana, got her start on TikTok and quickly grew her platform. Eventually, Rae was hanging out with A-list celebrities such as the Kardashians, and popping up at all sorts of high-profile events, many of which people did not think she deserved to be at due to her being “just another TikTok dancer.” So when it was announced that she was not only going to be in a Netflix movie, but be the lead of the remake of a classic rom com, social media exploded with opinions. 

I must admit, at first I was skeptical of this remake. As an avid watcher of romance movies, I was afraid the entire movie would ruin the original for me. I also did not have high hopes for Rae. Although I personally never had a problem with her, it just did not sit right with me that she had acquired the role over someone more qualified with actual experience in the industry. The few clips that were released prior to the film did not highlight Rae in any way either, so my expectations were rather low from the start, yet I was still intrigued to see what Netflix was going to come up with.

While definitely more geared towards Gen Z, with lots of TikTok references, and even cameo appearances from celebrities like Kourtney Kardashian, “He’s All That” was not the total flop I thought it would be.

I definitely wish we saw the main character jump through more strange hoops to win the bet. Everybody remembers Laney’s interpretive art show in the original film and Zach getting on stage with a hacky sack. I don’t think I would compare Padgett cleaning up horse manure to Zach’s attempt to fit into Laney’s art world. Zach even enlisted the help of the junior varsity team to clean Laney’s house, in an effort to help her family. It was scenes like this I wish were included in the remake, to show the lengths the protagonists would go to.

With that being said, I was surprised by how much I liked the movie. For Rae’s first big acting job, she did okay. I’m not saying she’s the next Jennifer Aniston, but I do believe she could have a future ahead of her if she works her way up. Although the movie definitely made me cringe at moments, especially when it came to Peyton Meyer and Madison Pettis’s performances, the chemistry between Rae and Bucchannon was one I would like to see again. 

Since Rae just signed an exclusive, multi-film deal with Netflix, she will definitely be popping up more in the media. One has to give her credit for breaking her way out of the Tiktok world, but at what cost? Surely there are many more deserving actresses and actors who have been working for years for this opportunity only for it to get taken by someone underqualified. Although many fans are infuriated with her sudden rise in the film industry, I for one am interested to see what else she does with this major step forward in her career.