LOS ANGELES – In 1985, young Hollywood actors saw their fortunes change in less than a week.
A New York magazine article, referring to them as the “Brat Pack,†came out on a Tuesday and, by Friday, Andrew McCarthy says, “our lives were different.â€
The term not only attached itself to the stars of “St. Elmo’s Fire,†but also those in a host of John Hughes movies.
“Certain core members were undeniable,†McCarthy says. Among them: Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald and McCarthy. Later, Anthony Michael Hall, Jon Cryer and others were considered part of the elite.
In a new docu-series, “BRATS,†McCarthy revisits the actors and discovers how they felt about the term and its impact. He talks to the article’s author, too, and discovers he never met the actors who were referenced. “I had a warmth for him that I did not anticipate,†McCarthy says.
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A seismic shift
As derogative as the term may have seemed, it actually noted a shift in films. In the mid-‘80s, McCarthy says, producers started targeting teens. “Grownups see movies once. Kids go to see movies five, six, seven times. Suddenly, Hollywood discovered the power of the youth market and we were there at that moment in time.â€
For some, it was a real burden, particularly when auditioning for other parts. Ally Sheedy remembers going into audition rooms and being treated like “partying, fame-seeking young punks.â€
“That’s how we perceived it,†McCarthy says. “Was there as much as we perceived? Probably not.â€
Others, like Rob Lowe, embraced the attention and used it to their advantage.
Emilio Estevez thought the label undercut them. “It made us seem like we were lightweights,†McCarthy says. “Whether we were or we weren’t, one would’ve liked that to be one’s own destiny, not put upon you.â€
In time, those actors gained perspective. Timothy Hutton, who won an Oscar for his work in “Ordinary People,†told him it’s “helpful†to look back.
Getting buy-in
As director of the documentary, McCarthy had no agenda, no set list of questions – just a desire to reconnect with those who were painted with the same brush. He got to most of the actors (Molly Ringwald and Judd Nelson were holdouts) and had what he called “kitchen table chats.â€
“I wasn’t interested in interviewing people and getting their responses,†McCarthy says. “I was interested in having a conversation. Consequently, I was revealing myself.â€
The 61-year-old actor hated the label. What he didn’t realize was how much affection the actors had for each other. “There’s a moment in the movie where I hug Rob. We weren’t particularly close when we were young because we were competitive. He was this Hollywood young movie star dude and I was trying to be this New York serious actor.â€
Now, “we’re not so competitive anymore,†McCarthy says. “We’re not so desperately yearning and striving. We were part of something that was actually something. As Rob says in the movie, ‘Thirty-five years later, they’re still talking about it.’ That’s not nothing in Hollywood, you know?â€
Responsible for categorizing the actors: Director Joel Schumacher, who also was a fashion designer and concerned with how everyone looked.
“Joel cast the movie very well,†he says of “St. Elmo’s Fire.†“I was very much that guy, that ‘rotten-before-I-was-ripe’ kind of cynicism to cover a mask of fear and insecurity that I had. That suited the role perfectly. Joel let me really turn the alchemy up: ‘But wear this jacket when you do it.’ He embraced everybody’s ‘themness.’â€
Thanks to her string of John Hughes films, Molly Ringwald became the icon of youth cinema. When the “Brat Pack†was at its peak, she was in three successful teen films. “And she wasn’t even mentioned in the Brat Park article,†McCarthy says.
When he asked her to be a part of the documentary, she said she’d think about it and then passed.
Jon Cryer has a theory why: “A lot of times as actors we want to be free of the baggage of our pop culture associations and we just want to act.â€
Today, something as enduring as the Brat Pack wouldn’t happen. The reason? Social media, McCarthy says. The hit-and-run aspect wouldn’t allow it. The Brat Pack “represented a seismic cultural shift that was happening†and it grew and took hold.
“BRATS†airs June 13 on Hulu.