Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Hulu’s Brats.
Summary
The new Hulu documentaryBratssaw actor-director Andrew McCarthy reach out to other members of the “Brat Pack” to talk about the nickname and their feelings about it, leading to some interesting reveals.The “Brat Pack”was the product of aNew York Magazineprofile on Emilio Estevez, who was considered the group’s leader, that turned into something much bigger than any of them could have expected. A big focus of the documentary waswhy the “Brat Pack” hated the nickname, with the tagline being “Everybody wanted to be in the Brat Pack. Except them.”
Not every “Brat Pack” member appeared in the Hulu documentary, but McCarthy managed to track down most of them. He also spoke to other popular young actors of the 1980s, critics and cultural figures, and the writer of theNew York Magazinearticle, David Blume. He blended these in-person interviews with archival footage from different“Brat Pack” moviesand interviews from back in the day. This allowed everyone’s voice to be heard, even those who didn’t fully participate.
11The Original Brat Pack Article Criticized The Actors
The Brat Pack Was Coined By New York Magazine
Most people simply remember David Blume’sNew York Magazinearticleas the piece that coined the “Brat Pack” nickname. However,Bratstells a different story that helps explain why those named as part of the “Brat Pack” were so upset at the time and remain conflicted about the nickname today. For the profile, Blume went to dinner with Estevez, Rob Lowe, and Judd Nelson, which ended up inspiring most of the piece.
Estevez expressed a sort of betrayal, as he’d thought Blume was his friend, just for him to criticize them in the article. Blume painted the actors as entitled kids skating on looks and popularity rather than talent. In the article, Blume even referred to Nelson as “overrated,” saying he’s “better off when typecast.” He called out the fact that many hadn’t spent years studying acting, suggesting they didn’t deserve their success. Beyond the somewhat condescending nickname of “Brat,” these words offended the “Brat Pack” the most.
10Andrew McCarthy & Emilio Estevez Were Supposed To Do Another Movie Together
Emilio Estevez Didn’t Want To Work With The Brat Pack Anymore
For McCarthy, makingBratsalso meant reuniting with others in the “Brat Pack,” many of which he hadn’t seen in over 30 years. Despite playing the popular cool kid Blane inPretty in Pink, McCarthy spoke about how he never felt like a cool insider the way Estevez, Nelson, and Lowe appeared to be.McCarthy and Estevez’s initial reunion was awkward, likely because of the reveal that they were supposed to do a movie together.
After the “Brat Pack” article was published, they were approached to make a film calledYoung Men With Unlimited Capitalbased on the memoir about two people who paid to attend the famous 1969 Woodstock Festival. Estevez called it “One of the best scripts [he] had read in a long time,” yet it never got made because of him. He found out McCarthy was being offered a role and turned it down, not wanting to work with another “Brat Pack” member. Estevez said he would’ve done the same if it had been Judd, as he, like others, was trying to separate himself from the moniker.
What Happened To Emilio Estevez?
Emilio Estevez will appear in Guns 3: Alias Billy the Kid, a film that he also wrote and directed. Estevez has actually been very busy offscreen.
Andrew McCarthy Confessed His Crush To Ally Sheedy
Ally Sheedy and Andrew McCarthy only worked on one film together, but it was considered one of the essential “Brat Pack” films,St. Elmo’s Fire(1985). Though they both expressed their complicated feelings towards the “Brat Pack” nickname, they also shared some good memories. The “Brat Pack” may not have been best friends, but they still worked together at formative moments of their lives.
McCarthy talked about a time Sheedy drove him home after a day of filming and how special that memory was for him. Ally spoke about not having friends in high school and feeling like she had real friends for the first time while filming.McCarthy then confessed to once having a crush on Sheedy, and while they moved on from it quickly, it was a sweet moment as they played love interests inSt. Elmo’s Fire.Bratseven cut in the clip where McCarthy’s character confesses his love for Sheedy’s character.
8The Brat Pack Struggled To Work After The Article
Hollywood Began Treating The Brat Pack Differently After The Article
Multiple “Brat Pack” members saw the article and the response to it as a way to humble them for all the success they’d been getting. They felt by focusing on their social lives and including comments about how they weren’t college graduates, the intention was to knock them down a peg. Even if this wasn’t the intention, some actors in the “Brat Pack” felt the impact when auditioning and trying to get work post-article.
McCarthy and others shared that there was a different energy and attitude towards them while auditioning. McCarthy was particularly upset with the “Brat Pack” article because he had studied acting for a while at New York University (NYU). His agents corroborated this, as they also noticed the change and saw howthe “Brat Pack” article ultimately hurt his career in some ways.
7Lea Thompson Wanted To Be In The Brat Pack
People Assumed The Brat Pack Were Best Friends
McCarthy didn’t just speak to those who were considered officially part of the “Brat Pack,” but those who were adjacent to them as well. This included Lea Thompson, who starred in Howard Deutch and John Hughes’Some Kind of Wonderful(1987) and experienced success in the 1980s with theBack to the Futurefilms. Also featured in the documentary was Jon Cryer, known for playing Duckie in Deutch and Hughes’Pretty in Pink(1986).
They weren’t officially considered part of the “Brat Pack,” as they weren’t in movies likeSt. Elmo’s FireandThe Breakfast Club(1985). Yet, they told McCarthy that part of them wanted to be in the group. Thompson, like many, saw them as a group of cool best friends. However,the “Brat Pack” were never best friends; a writer’s words and their films were what grouped them.
6Molly Ringwald & Judd Nelson Didn’t Want To Be Interviewed For BRATS
Molly Ringwald Wanted To Move Forward
ThroughoutBrats, McCarthy had varying degrees of success getting his fellow “Brat Pack” members to sit with him and his film crew for interviews. For example, Demi Moore and Lowe were harder to get a hold of. This wasn’t exactly surprising, as they are probably the two who have experienced the most success since the days of the “Brat Pack.”
Yet, two people he ultimately couldn’t get onscreen were Molly Ringwald and Judd. He talked with Ringwald off camera, and she told him she didn’t want to be inBratsbecause she just wanted to move on. Ringwald was one of the younger members, only a teenager inher movies with John Hughes, so it’s understandable that she doesn’t want to look backward. Curiously,the youngest member, Andrew McCarthy, was never even mentioned inBrats.
On the other hand, Judd was just very off the grid. It wasn’t until the final moments ofBratsthat Judd actually called McCarthy back, and the film ended immediately after. This is somewhat of a cliffhanger, but it can be assumed that Judd shared a similar sentiment to Molly. McCarthy opted to use old interview footage of them instead.
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5Demi Moore Was Given A Sober Companion On St. Elmo’s Fire
The St. Elmo’s Fire Director Protected Demi Moore
Unfortunately, getting famous and fast at a young age can lead stars down a difficult path. Many members of the “Brat Pack,” including Sheedy, Moore, and McCarthy had their own issues with alcoholism and drug addiction in their youth. Fortunately, they have since received help and openly talked about their journeys.
Moore was only 23 when she didSt. Elmo’s Fire, her fifth film, but she’d already been in rehab. She was advised not to make the film if she wanted to maintain her sobriety. They asked her if her life or the movie was more important to her, and she said the movie. Luckily,St. Elmo’s Firedirector Joel Schumacher was looking out for Moore and hired a sober companion to be with herthroughout filming. Moore was grateful Schumacher did that for her instead of replacing her.
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4Demi Moore Saw The Brat Pack Differently From Others
Demi Moore Didn’t Let The Nickname Affect Her
While Moore also expressed annoyance and conflicting emotions regarding the “Brat Pack” nickname, she viewed it differently. Perhaps she was able to have this perspective because it never appeared to hold her back from success – she kicked off the 1990s with the huge box-office successGhost. She also could have had this success because of her differing perspective.
In some ways, the “Brat Pack” members got in their own way because of the nickname. As aforementioned, Estevez even turned down a movie because he didn’t want to be associated with McCarthy and the others. Moore said while the name followed her in the press for a while, over time, she didn’t take it “as personal” as some others did. She saw the “Brat Pack” name trying to “diminish” them and took it as an “opportunity to rise above” instead, and she rose.
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3The Original Ending For Pretty In Pink Tested Poorly
Pretty In Pink Changed Its Controversial Ending Last Minute
John Hughes followed up the successful year ofThe Breakfast ClubandWeird SciencewithPretty in Pink, starring “Brat Pack” members Ringwald and McCarthy and adjacent member Cryer. It was the lastmovie Ringwald made with Hughes. While some consider it their best collaboration, it didn’t test well with initial audiences. Sadly, Hughes passed away in 2009 at 59, but McCarthy spoke with director Howard Deutch forBrats.
ThePretty in Pinkendingstill gets debated today, as people have split themselves up into “team Duckie” (Cryer) and “team Blane” (McCarthy). Yet, in the original ending, she chose neither. After strong negative reactions in audience tests, they shot the version where Andie ends up with Blane. McCarthy had already been working on another movie that caused him to change his hair, meaning he had to wear a wig he still cringes at for the final scene.
2The Brat Pack Met The Rat Pack
Rob Lowe & Andrew McCarthy Met Sammy Davis Jr.
The “Brat Pack” nickname was also a play on the famous “Rat Pack” of the 1950s and 1960s, to which they were compared to in the original article. The group included Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., and more, with their paths usually crossing in films and casinos. While Lowe and McCarthy weren’t friends, they had dinner together one night while filmingSt. Elmo’s Fire, which they spoke about inBrats.
To McCarthy’s surprise, the dinner was with Liza Minnelli. Just as it seemed like the night was over, Liza took them to Sammy Davis Jr.’s house, where the “Brat Pack” met the “Rat Pack.” Davis Jr. complimented their work and said he was watching them. Lowe said things like that “routinely happened” to him, and he sees stories like theirs repeating with each generation of young stars.
