But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)

Peter (character from film) (0:01)

Megan, lately we've become concerned about certain behaviors.

Kat Dennings (0:05)

You don't even like to kiss me.

Jamie Babbit (0:07)

It's true. A lot of people say when I'm a cheerleader was before its time, but it was actually very much of its time.

Dante Basco (0:13)

Honey, we think you're a lesbian.

RuPaul (0:16)

I myself was once a gay.

Jamie Babbit (0:19)

We were queer writers, directors, actors, who were coming together. We were very young, and so we kind of knew what young people wanted.

Peter (character from film) (0:28)

What about forward play?

Cathy Moriarty (0:29)

Forward play is for sissies. Real men, go in, unload, and pull out.

Jamie Babbit (0:34)

Mom! The movie has had a real fun journey, and I'm just so happy that more people have found it.

And, action! I was a young filmmaker in my 20s, in the 90s, and I was a queer woman who was basically coming out of high school and looking for queer content that I related to.

Cathy Moriarty (1:05)

Why don't you start by telling us about the first time that you realized that you might be a lesbian?

Joel Michael (1:10)

I'm not.

RuPaul (1:11)

Denial is a normal part of the healing process that we'll explore.

Jamie Babbit (1:16)

I went into filmmaking wanting to be political, and I do think that a mature leader was politics for me. And one of the reasons I wanted to be a filmmaker is I thought the way to change people's hearts and minds is to seduce them with a story and with laughing, and while they're laughing, teach them something. And I really felt the need to sort of give a political voice to queer people.

Joel Michael (1:43)

Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.

Jamie Babbit (1:45)

So my idea was I want to make a film that is queer, joyful, funny. Basically, I aspired for it to be like a gay clueless, and so that's sort of where But I'm a Cheerleader came from.

Natasha Lyonne (1:58)

I'm not perverted.

Film character (2:00)

I get good grades. I go to church.

Natasha Lyonne (2:03)

I'm a cheerleader.

Jamie Babbit (2:05)

I was really excited about putting the cast together because I was such a fan of so many actors of my generation. I directed a short film called Sleeping Beauties, and the lead actress was Clea Duval. I just thought she had such a unique look and a very understated way about her.

Natasha Lyonne (2:22)

Inappropriate, like swaying?

Melanie Lynskey (2:24)

No, inappropriate like fucking.

Clea DuVall (2:25)

You get caught in the throes of sodomy and au revoir.

Jamie Babbit (2:28)

One of the reasons I knew Natasha would be great in the role is because she was such a fan of Clea. She had a lot of enthusiasm to play it, and I knew that her and Clea would have good chemistry because they had good chemistry as friends.

Film character (2:40)

Five, six, seven, eight. God is good. God is straight.

Jamie Babbit (2:44)

I was really excited when the casting director said to me, RuPaul is interested in playing Mike.

RuPaul (2:49)

Hi, Megan. My name is Mike.

Jamie Babbit (2:50)

At the time, he was really only seen in drag, and he was very famous and basically just spoke to how fun he thought it would be to play an ex-gay.

Bud Cort (3:03)

If I catch you looking at another man like that ever again, you'll be watching sports the whole weekend.

Jamie Babbit (3:09)

We had Cathy Moriarty playing Mary, and we were so excited and honored because she was sort of a big star at the time.

Cathy Moriarty (3:17)

What are you, about 17?

Bud Cort (3:18)

Yes.

Cathy Moriarty (3:19)

Almost lost her to college. It's so much harder once they've been through all that liberal arts brainwashing.

Jamie Babbit (3:26)

Melanie Linsky I had loved from Heavenly Creatures. She's a really good actress, and she's very funny.

Melanie Lynskey (3:31)

Doesn't it feel great to be straight?

Jamie Babbit (3:33)

And then we had the main guy from Harold and Maud, Bud Court, as the father, and Mink Stoll, as the mother. They just brought something different to a line or a scene than what I expected, and it was always a good surprise.

Peter (character from film) (3:47)

Your mom and I both know that you didn't have anything to do with that, that...

Dante Basco (3:54)

Field trip to the cocksucker.

Peter (character from film) (3:55)

Field trip to the...

Jamie Babbit (3:58)

It was a pleasure to cast the roles because they were so fun, and there obviously are so many queer actors in LA. And they were like me, they were in their 20s, and they were really hungry for, like, a fun queer movie, too.