Alicia Silverstone Recreates Clueless Scene With Son Bear, 14

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Oh, no—you don’t understand…this is a totally important scene from Clueless.

Actress Alicia Silverstone recently revisited a famous scene from her 1995 movie with her 14-year-old son, Bear, who she shares with her ex-husband, Christopher Jarecki, as he approaches a special occasion.

In a video posted to social media on October 14th, a mother and son playfully lip-sync to a scene from the movie Clueless. The scene features Alicia Silverstone’s character, Cher Horowitz, being playfully questioned by her father, Mel Horowitz (played by Dan Hedaya), about her outfit for a date – specifically, wearing a short dress.

Wearing glasses and a blazer, Bear exclaimed, “Cher, come here! What is that?” Alicia simply replied, “A dress.”

When he questions who said that, she famously responds with “Calvin Klein.” Her father then comments that her white dress looks more like underwear.

I was so touched when I saw this! The video originally went up on TikTok back in 2021 for the 26th anniversary of Clueless, but I just found out she actually shared it again because her son, Bear, is getting ready for his bar mitzvah. It’s just the sweetest connection!

Okay, can you believe it? My son is turning thirteen and having his Bar Mitzvah this weekend! I posted a sweet video on Instagram, and honestly, it feels like just yesterday he was a baby – time really flies! It’s a big milestone, and I’m so incredibly proud of the young man he’s becoming.

People loved the sketch and filled the comments section with praise, with many pointing out the incredible resemblance between the two people featured. Paris Hilton even called the video “iconic.”

Showing just how much she still loves the movie Clueless, she’s working on a sequel series for Peacock.

Alicia will be the executive producer and star of the series, joined by Jordan Weiss and the creators of Gossip Girl, Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, who are also writing. Amy Heckerling, the writer and director of the original film, and Robert Lawrence, a producer from the original movie, will also executive produce the new series.

Showing just how much she still loves the movie Clueless, she’s working on a sequel series for Peacock.

Alicia will be the executive producer and star of the series, joined by Jordan Weiss and the creators of Gossip Girl, Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, who are also writing the show. Amy Heckerling, who wrote and directed the original movie, and Robert Lawrence, a producer from the original film, will also executive produce the new series.

“She loves her daddy so much!” Alicia said. She also wanted to create a kind and supportive character, so she really focused on putting a lot of emotion and care into the role, even though some parts of the character were a bit awkward.

Keep reading for secrets about Clueless that you might not have known about…

“She loves her daddy so much!” Alicia said. She also wanted to create a kind and supportive character, so she focused all her energy and emotion into the role, even with some parts that felt a little awkward.

Keep reading for secrets about Clueless that you might not have known about…

Trying to find a typical high school boy can feel pointless, like looking for depth in a Pauly Shore movie. However, research at Beverly Hills High School proved surprisingly helpful for writer-director Amy Heckerling. As she explained to Entertainment Weekly, she noticed the girls were always focused on their appearance and constantly getting ready.

The producers went through several name changes while making their high school movie, and weren’t quite sure what to call it. They considered titles like No Worries and I Was a Teenage Teenager before settling on the final one.

Oh my gosh, can you believe Alicia Silverstone was always meant to be Cher? I read that Amy Heckerling totally spotted her potential early on – she was in a bunch of Aerosmith videos, and Amy was just captivated! She even taped one of the videos so she could show everyone exactly who she envisioned for the part when she turned in the script. It’s like she knew Alicia was perfect from the start, and I totally agree! It’s amazing to think how perfectly cast she was.

Her casting director friend, Carrie Frazier, repeatedly urged her to consider Alicia Silverstone, who had been in The Crush. Initially, she was looking for someone else – the girl from the Aerosmith music videos – but she realized they were talking about the same actress.

Silverstone won the role during a dinner with the director, Heckerling. According to Twink Caplan, who also played Cher’s teacher, Miss Geist, Alicia Silverstone sipped her drink in a unique way – she leaned across the table to drink from the straw still in the glass. Heckerling immediately knew Silverstone was perfect for the part, describing her as incredibly sweet – a quality she still possesses.

Amy Heckerling was confident in her vision, but studio executives insisted on auditioning a lot of actresses. As Heckerling remembered in Jen Chaney’s 2015 book, As If!: The Oral History of Clueless, which was featured in Vanity Fair, they brought in actresses like Alicia Witt, Tiffani Thiessen (who had recently cut her hair to the dismay of fans), and Keri Russell. They also asked Heckerling to look at the actress from Flesh and Bone, but she never got the chance—that actress turned out to be Gwyneth Paltrow.

Reese Witherspoon also strongly pursued the role, with many believing she would become a big star, according to Heckerling. However, ultimately, Alicia Silverstone was the perfect fit for Cher.

Several other actors were considered for roles in the movie. Josh, Ben Affleck, and Jeremy Renner were all potential candidates. Lauryn Hill auditioned for the role of Dionne, Cher’s best friend, and Terrence Howard was considered for Dionne’s boyfriend, Murray. Seth Green and Owen Wilson were both in the running to play the character Travis, while Sarah Michelle Gellar was offered the part of Amber. Getting Gellar involved proved difficult, as her commitments to the TV show All My Children caused a negotiation. According to co-producer Adam Schroeder, the show’s producers wouldn’t release her for even a couple of weeks, effectively blocking the casting.

It’s hard to picture anyone other than Paul Rudd as Josh, Cher’s love interest in the movie, but the studio initially considered another actor. When that didn’t work out, they asked Paul Rudd to audition, and he was fantastic, according to casting director Marcia Ross in an interview with The Telegraph. He really had to work for the role, going through numerous auditions.

I remember reading about this in Chaney’s book, and it was fascinating! Apparently, when he first heard about the role, he assumed the character, Murray, was a white man trying to become Black. He even thought it was a unique angle – a white guy trying to take over Black culture. Then he found out the actor playing Murray was actually African-American himself! He said it was a total ‘Oh, okay’ moment – a complete shift in perspective. It’s funny how assumptions can be so far off!

The biggest challenge in casting the movie was finding the right actor to play Christian, Cher’s love interest. According to director Amy Heckerling, they auditioned many people, but none of them captured the specific, nostalgic feel they were looking for.

When actor Justin Walker walked into the audition, everyone knew he was right for the part of Christian. Before that moment, they hadn’t found anyone who fit. Walker, who barely had time to review the audition material beforehand, vividly remembers getting the news. He was working at the Overtime Bar and Grill, near Madison Square Garden, and spoke to his agent on a pay phone – yes, a pay phone! – when she told him he’d gotten the role. He immediately dropped the phone and ran south on Eighth Avenue.

Finding actors for the roles of the heartbroken teachers, Miss Geist and Mr. Hall, was a straightforward process. Wallace Shawn, who played the unexpected romantic lead, explained, “They probably thought I’d be a good fit without even needing an audition.” He added that his own experience as a schoolteacher helped him understand and portray the character authentically.

I remember hearing from Amy Heckerling’s associate producer, Caplan, that she was completely surprised when she found out she was being considered for the role of Miss Geist! Apparently, the character was actually inspired by one of Amy’s old teachers, and Amy thought Caplan would be perfect to play her. It was a part written specifically with her in mind, which is so cool!

When the actor originally cast as Cher’s mugger canceled just hours before filming, director Amy Heckerling had to quickly find a replacement. It was difficult to reach people because mobile phones weren’t common then – she remembers calling offices and getting no answer. Luckily, Jace Alexander was working with producer Scott Rudin at the time, and that’s how he ended up getting the part.

Breckin Meyer was especially excited to get the role of Travis. He told Entertainment Weekly that he was going through a tough time in his career and had spent all the money he’d earned as a child actor. He was living in a garage with no heat or hot water, and even slept on a mattress on the floor. He had to go to Seth Green’s house just to shower and do laundry.

Alicia Silverstone, though only 17 during filming, wasn’t a huge fashion enthusiast herself. She shared at the 2019 Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo that she sometimes found it hard to connect with Cher’s elaborate wardrobe – Cher wore around 64 different outfits in the 100-minute movie! – because Silverstone typically just wore “the same green T-shirt and jeans.”

Even when the book first came out in 1995, she told the Allentown Morning Call that she did a lot of research for the role because she doesn’t enjoy dressing up. She prefers comfortable clothes like black sweatpants and a T-shirt, describing herself as a practical and somewhat of a tomboy.

It took a full week to determine each character’s unique style. According to Stacey Dash, they spent seven ten-hour days just on fittings, going through ‘racks and racks and racks’ of clothes. Dash particularly loved Dionne’s plaid outfit, especially the hat which she described as resembling ‘a pretty little cake’.

Dash said she and her Scrubsera co-star Donald Faison had genuine chemistry when they played a couple on screen, telling The Telegraph* it felt natural, not like they were acting.

Faison was definitely smitten. He admitted, “I was completely captivated by her.” He recalled excitedly telling his friends he was going to date the actress from Mo’ Money, and they immediately started asking if he’d be kissing her. He responded with enthusiasm, saying, “Yes! Absolutely, I’m going to kiss her, and it’s going to be a good kiss!”

That kiss was actually his first on-screen romantic moment. Director Amy Heckerling told the New York Post that after she called ‘cut,’ the actor was incredibly excited, jumping around the set. She described him as bouncing like a puppy, clearly happy and proud of the experience.

The 40-day shoot in the winter of 1994 had a similar lighthearted feel to the high school experience the film aimed to portray. As Shawn described it, making the movie felt like a fun, innocent gathering where everyone was simply enjoying themselves. The cast wasn’t focused on future careers; they were just having a good time, and the whole experience was incredibly enjoyable.

 

It was common for the younger actors to spend time together in each other’s trailers on set. Elisa Donovan, who played the snobby Monet Amber, described the experience as a dream. She explained that it was exciting to work with people their age, wear fun costumes, and that it was a real launching pad for everyone’s careers.

Faison remembers a relaxed time on set, spending a lot of downtime with his friends. He and Meyer even shared a trailer, removing the divider to hang out constantly. He describes the filming process as very easygoing: just showing up, relaxing in the trailer, taking naps, and then shooting scenes.

For several weeks afterward, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, and Evan Goldberg became very close and all stayed at Rogen’s apartment. Rogen told Entertainment Weekly that they would watch movies starring Corey Haim and Corey Feldman every night, and spent their days looking for other work.

Alicia Silverstone felt the pressure of being the film’s lead, and her experience differed from her co-stars. While others seemed to enjoy a fun, fleeting involvement, she described her work as demanding and tiring. “I was in every scene, working crazy hours,” she explained, “and I was exhausted.”

Let me tell you, life on set isn’t always glamorous! I heard this hilarious story from a colleague about Alicia having a tiny dog, and apparently, it wasn’t always great about where it did its business – right outside the makeup trailer! People were understandably upset about stepping in it, and honestly, I would be too! My colleague had to gently suggest to someone, ‘Could we maybe get this little guy on a leash?’ It just goes to show, even celebrities deal with the everyday chaos of pet ownership – and the need for a little common courtesy!

Filming one of the memorable scenes from the party proved surprisingly difficult. The actors couldn’t quite get the “Suck and Blow” gag to work with a real credit card, so the prop department had to build one out of cardboard. They even used multiple layers of ChapStick to help create the necessary suction.

Just as upsetting to some was Murray’s shaved head, which so bothered Dionne that she threatened to call his mother. Meyer shared at a 2019 Chicago event that they deliberately left a small amount of hair on the sides of Faison’s head, ensuring it would be visible whenever he wore a hat during filming.

Director Amy Heckerling made a very quick, almost unnoticeable appearance in the film as a bridesmaid at the wedding. According to Caplan, Heckerling insisted on being in the scene. When it came time to film the bouquet toss, the actresses weren’t reacting enthusiastically enough, so Heckerling stepped in to playfully push them and create more energy for the shot.

Did Amy Heckerling invent Cher’s famous catchphrase, “As if!”? Not likely! The screenwriter has a keen interest in language and was actively collecting slang terms at the time. She told The Hollywood Reporter in 2016 that she’d heard “As if!” circulating within the gay community in the early ’90s and believed it was a versatile phrase that teenagers would easily adopt.

Although the quote appeared on the outlet’s list of 100 Favorite Movie Quotes, director Amy Heckerling actually preferred a line from Cher’s debate class scene: “I guess, in a silly way, I’ve always been proud of ‘It does not say RSVP on the Statue of Liberty.’”

I’ve always been fascinated by how she built the show’s unique language! She told Entertainment Weekly that she actually came up with a lot of the slang by asking the child actors for new words – that’s how ‘going postal’ made it in! And the character names? ‘Betty’ was inspired by Betty Rubble, because she was considered so beautiful. As for ‘Barney,’ she jokingly wondered how he managed to win Betty over!

As a huge fan, one of my absolute favorite moments in the movie comes from Alicia Silverstone herself! She was delivering Cher’s debate speech about immigration, and she totally mispronounced “Haitians.” Director Amy Heckerling told Entertainment Weekly that everyone rushed up to correct her, but she had to stop them. It was so much funnier the way Cher said it, and that just is Cher, you know? It’s a perfect little moment that still makes me laugh!

Picking a single best moment from the movie is tough. Dash loved filming the tennis court scene, especially when Elisa Donovan delivers the line, ‘My plastic surgeon doesn’t want me doing activities where balls fly at my nose,’ followed by his response, ‘There goes your social life.’ Alicia Silverstone, however, favors Tai’s iconic insult, ‘You’re a virgin who can’t drive.’ She says the way Tai says it, with her puckered mouth, is hilarious and ‘way harsh, Tai.’

Paul Rudd jokes that Cher and Josh likely aren’t still together, considering they moved to California. However, Silverstone is more hopeful, telling Entertainment Weekly she imagines Cher happily married to Rudd with children, pursuing a fulfilling career – perhaps even as a professional organizer – and generally being content.

Herckerling pictures her character, Cher, as very socially aware. She told The A.V. Club that the 2020 version of Cher would definitely advocate for things like mask-wearing, equality, fair wages, and improvements to immigration and the prison system. She’d also be a strong voice for environmental protection and against corporations that harm our food, air, and water. It’s a long list, Herckerling noted.

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2025-10-22 22:20