Wet Hot American Summer
High times. Hard bodies. Soft rock.
It's the last day of Camp Firewood's season, but there's still time for the big talent show, a little romance… and for everyone to be wiped out by the piece of NASA's Skylab that's hurtling toward Earth.
Directed by David Wain · Comedy · 97 min · 2001
Trailer
Director
David Wain
Writer
David Wain, Michael Showalter
Studio
Eureka Pictures / North Coast Group
Release
2001-07-27
Runtime
97 min
Genres
Comedy
Full Plot
The setting is Camp Firewood, the year 1981. It's the last day before everyone goes back to the real world, but there's still a summer's worth of unfinished business to resolve. At the center of the action is camp director Beth, who struggles to keep order while she falls in love with the local astrophysics professor. He is busy trying to save the camp from a deadly piece of NASA's Skylab which is hurtling toward earth. All that, plus: a dangerous waterfall rescue, love triangles, misfits, cool kids, and talking vegetable cans. The questions will all be resolved, of course, at the big talent show at the end of the day.
Cast & Characters
Beth
Janeane Garofalo
Henry
David Hyde Pierce
Coop / Alan Shemper
Michael Showalter
Katie
Marguerite Moreau
Andy
Paul Rudd
J.J.
Zak Orth
Gail von Kleinenstein
Molly Shannon
Gene
Christopher Meloni
Victor Pulak
Ken Marino
McKinley
Michael Ian Black
Gary
A. D. Miles
Nancy
Nina Hellman
Susie
Amy Poehler
Ben
Bradley Cooper
Did You Know?
Made on an estimated budget of $5.0M, Wet Hot American Summer has grossed $295,206 worldwide — about 0.1x its budget.
Source: TMDb API · verified 2026-08-02
Wet Hot American Summer received mostly negative reviews from critics.
Source: Wikipedia · verified 2026-08-03
The film's financing took three years to assemble; in a June 2011 interview, Wain revealed the film's budget was $1.
Source: Wikipedia · verified 2026-08-03
Critical Assessment
Wet Hot American Summer holds 6.2/10 on TMDb (897 votes). IMDb/Rotten Tomatoes/Metacritic scores will populate automatically via the site's daily refresh once available.
Not enough independent critic/audience score breakdown available.
Ratings as of August 2, 2026
Where to Watch
United States
Streaming data from JustWatch via TMDb. Availability changes often — confirm on the provider before watching.
AI Verdict
AI-generatedBased on TMDb's aggregated score (6.2/10 on TMDb (897 votes)), this is a data-driven snapshot rather than an editorial take.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Wet Hot American Summer good? What are critics saying?+
Wet Hot American Summer holds 6.2/10 on TMDb (897 votes). IMDb/Rotten Tomatoes/Metacritic scores will populate automatically via the site's daily refresh once available.
How long is Wet Hot American Summer?+
Wet Hot American Summer has a runtime of 97 min.
Who directed Wet Hot American Summer?+
Wet Hot American Summer was directed by David Wain.
Where can I watch Wet Hot American Summer?+
Wet Hot American Summer is available to stream, rent, or buy on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
Fan & Critic Buzz
The public reaction is overwhelmingly positive, with enthusiastic comments expressing excitement and eagerness for the revival. Many users express their enthusiasm through exclamation points, capitalization (e.g. "HELL YEAH"), and repetition (e.g. "WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER"). The use of all caps in some messages also suggests a strong emotional investment in the project.
From the trailer's comments
The Netflix revival, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day Of Camp, is a GLORIOUS experience. Jane, Jane, JAAAAAAAANE!!!
@DansChan995 · 14 likesIt would be hilarious if the whole cast reunited just to reshoot the five second joke at the end showing their reunion 25 years later.
@copaceticetal · 7 likesSounds great, I'm gonna go smear mud on my ass.
@mrhappy5236 · 9 likesTickets purchased
@MrJeepraines · 0 likesI just can't wait to see this movie!!
@kingporter67 · 0 likesHell Yeah, missed the original release!
@garyx5x · 0 likesI didn't know this was happening
@jellymull · 0 likes"🙂↔️😐🙂↔️😳" - "McKinley and Ben! THIS IS FOR YOU..." - "Secret handshake (🤝)" - "I SAID NO!"
@adam-j-cohn · 0 likes
