The Sure Thing (1985) on Netflix
PG-1319851h 40mComedyDramaRomance
College freshman Walter Gibson heads to California for break, where his friend promises him a sure thing. Alison Bradbury, a regimented classmate visiting her boyfriend, shares the ride.
- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb7.0/1024,541 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes81%
Trailer
Plot summary
Gib is a college freshman in New England whose luck with girls has run out. His best friend Lance, now at UCLA, invites him west for Christmas break and promises to set him up with a girl he calls a sure thing. Gib finds a ride share heading to California and learns that Alison Bradbury, his regimented English classmate, is a passenger; she is traveling to Los Angeles to see her boyfriend, Jason. Gib had earlier tried to get her to tutor him, and his clumsy attempt to win her over angered her. On the road the two clash, and their bickering wears down the patience of the students driving them.
Cast
- Marcia Christieas Julie
- Robert Anthony Marcuccias Bobby
- Lorrie Lightleas Lucy
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Sure Thing (1985)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- At the time of his casting John Cusack was still 16 and had not graduated from high school, so producer Roger Birnbaum had to go to court to have him emancipated, and during the March-April 1984 shoot Birnbaum became Cusack's legal guardian.
- The film came from an experience writer Steven L. Bloom had at Brown University: his best friend at Emory University in Atlanta kept recounting the good times he was having, and out of pity arranged a sure thing for Bloom, who found a ride through a ride board and drove to Atlanta.
- The winter of 1984 was uncharacteristically warm, so when a blizzard hit upstate New York a second unit was sent to Ithaca for snowy footage, while the University of the Pacific exteriors in Stockton were sprayed with fire-retardant foam to look snowed on.
- When casting for the part of Walter "Gib" Gibson began, director Rob Reiner initially refused even to meet John Cusack because the actor was under-aged.
- Rob Reiner cast Daphne Zuniga in the role of Alison Bradbury; she said in a 2025 interview that he was inspired to cast her because she "reminded him of someone he was in love with or had a crush on in college".
- Anthony Edwards was seriously being considered for the lead at the time, but after John Cusack got the part, Edwards was offered the best friend role instead.
