“I Can’t Critique This Movie, To Me It’s Perfect”: 16 Years Later, Amanda Seyfried Says “The Marketing” Was to Blame for the Poor Reception of ‘Jennifer’s Body’

Amanda Seyfried has strong feelings about her 2009 horror-comedy film “Jennifer’s Body.” She played Needy Lesnicki, a shy high school girl whose best friend Jennifer, acted by Megan Fox, gets possessed by a demon and starts killing boys.

The movie, directed by Karyn Kusama and written by Diablo Cody, didn’t do well when it came out. Seyfried blames the failure on bad marketing.

In a recent chat with GQ, Seyfried praised the film. “I can’t critique this movie. To me, it’s perfect,” she said. “It’s got balls. Diablo Cody was outspoken and beautiful and smart and funny. We were expressing a certain angst in a very specific, comedic way in a very specific genre. The special effects were so incredible, there were stunts, there was everything you could want.” She believes it had a unique mix of humor, horror, and stunts that made it special.

The marketing, however, let it down. Seyfried said, “If the critics criticize anything, it would be the marketing. The marketing sucked. It just did. And we all agree.” The ads focused heavily on Fox’s looks to attract young men, but the film was really about female friendship and empowerment.

“The marketing team cheapened it like it was just a gory romp. I think they ruined it, and I think Karyn and Diablo were a really good team,” she added. Seyfried feels the campaign hid the movie’s true heart.

Despite its rough start, “Jennifer’s Body” has grown popular over time. Fans now see it as a feminist cult classic. Seyfried loved her role. “I love Needy. It was the first time I got to play really nerdy, wearing the glasses. Megan got to turn into a demon, it was awesome. We all just had a lot of fun, so I wanna celebrate it by doing a sequel,” she said. She enjoyed playing a nerdy character and had a blast on set.

Talk of a sequel excites her. At the end of the original, Jennifer dies, and Needy ends up in a mental hospital. Still, Seyfried isn’t convinced Jennifer’s story is over. “She’s kind of dead, right? But is she? I don’t think she is,” she said.

She’s eager to team up again with Fox, Kusama, and Cody. “I think that Karyn and Diablo were a really good team. And Megan and I are a really good team. I’m looking forward to the sequel,” she told GQ. She’s already said yes to the idea.

You can watch the whole interview here:

Cody, the writer, also wants more. “I want to do a sequel. I am not done with Jennifer’s Body,” she told Bloody Disgusting. “I just need to find…I need to partner with people who believe it in [sic] as much as I do and that hasn’t really happened yet. I need someone to believe in it who has a billion dollars.” She felt hurt by the film’s early failure but is inspired by its new fans.

Seyfried sees a future for Needy too. “I just wanna see Needy in a power position. Not necessarily in a power suit, but in a power position. Maybe she runs her branch of Planned Parenthood or something. She’s a badass,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. She imagines big things for her character and wonders where Jennifer might fit in, even after her death.

The film’s journey from flop to favorite shows its lasting appeal. Seyfried values Kusama’s skill. “Karyn is like a fierce advocate of women in storytelling. She is able to enhance the relationships between women on film and TV,” she said. “She put it together so beautifully, and the marketing team cheapened it like it was just a romp, a gory romp. I think they ruined it.” She credits Kusama for its depth, which the marketing missed.

Even other actors, like Adam Brody who played Nikolai Wolf, saw its worth early on. “It definitely was derided at the time and that felt a little unwarranted because I saw it early and I was like, this movie is great,” he told The Independent in 2023. The growing love for “Jennifer’s Body” keeps hope alive for a new chapter.

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