Addison Rae Easterling, widely known as Addison Rae, is best known for her infamous rise to fame via TikTok. While many condemn the star for effectively becoming a “nothing” celebrity (like the Kardashians, for example—one of whom she had a brief public friendship with), the influencer’s massive following only encouraged Netflix executives to sign her onto the 2021 She’s All That remake, He’s All That.
I have seen He’s All That about six times since its release (and more than likely will continue to rewatch it), and while I do not disagree with some of the film’s criticisms—the script is poorly written, the narrative is overdone, the acting is hilariously bad—I cannot deny that the film mirrors the tone of so many turn-of-the-century rom coms our generation looks back on with nostalgia. The movie is rompy; it doesn’t take itself too seriously or try too hard to get the viewer to take it seriously. I initially watched He’s All That knowing I could make fun of it, but I’m past the point of ironic love for the movie. If anything, it reminds me that “guilty” pleasures are only guilty because other people impress upon me that I should be embarrassed by them.
I used to jump on the bandwagon of hate for anything and everything popular (and admittedly still do from time to time). I distinctly remember sitting in high school choir when my friend asked me what I thought about Charli D’Amelio (who had just risen to fame at the time). My immediate response was, “I hate her”; my friend asked, “Why?” and I was at a loss for an answer. Why did I hate this teenage TikTok star, who only ever got famous by accident, who only ever posted videos of herself dancing in her room, who didn’t do anything to make me—or anybody else—hate her? I realized then that hating things just to hate things, or to not be “like other girls,” is unproductive and regressive. Not only this, but it signaled that I had an anxiety of others judging me that I needed to work on if I were to ever enjoy the little, silly, simple things in life.
So a few years later, after I had worked on these issues, I was genuinely excited when He’s All That was released. I enjoyed watching it not out of hate, but out of joy that something so silly could brighten my day. In a way, I could relate to Rae’s character Padgett Sawyer (minus the millions of followers and dollars), because instead of looking for affirmation in my negativity, I embraced the weird and the “cringy,” accepting that these things can be just as fun as they are ridiculous. I ask all my friends if they’ve seen the movie, and if they haven’t, I encourage us to watch it together because I know it’ll be a good time. He’s All That is the perfect pick-me-up, the ideal reminder to not take life so seriously. I think we can all take a note from Padgett, who reminds us to be “the most spectacular you can be,” from the inside out.