Jennifer Aniston would become one of NBC’s biggest stars as Rachel Green on “Friends,” but the path to fame isn’t always smooth. One of her bumps along the way (besides starring in the ridiculous horror comedy “Leprechaun”), was her role in a television adaptation of John Hughes’ ’80s classic “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” Aniston was perfect for the role of Jeannie, Ferris’ sister, taking over from Jennifer Grey, who played that character in the film. Aniston’s low, deadpan voice, pouty mouth, and sighs of exasperation perfectly captured Jeannie’s sourpuss attitude and frustration with Ferris’ antics — namely his uncanny ability to charm everyone he comes across and his nimble ways of wriggling out of trouble. She’s a great fit for the role, but the television show itself? Well, it’s not so great. It’s bizarre, even.
“Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” the best John Hughes film ever made, focuses on the best day ever during senior year — one final celebration before its characters Ferris, Cameron, and Sloan face the humdrum of adulthood. However, to make the story work for a TV series, the writers had to go backward, taking us to Ferris’ junior year to explore the daily life of the smooth-talking, fun-loving teenage rascal. This concept didn’t last long, since the series ended up getting canceled just a few months after its debut with only 13 episodes aired. The reviews were poor, with the Ottawa Citizen calling the series a “high school horror” that deserves a “failing grade.” It just didn’t have the magic spark of the movie, existing in a strange parallel universe where this version of Ferris was not, as the Boston Globe memorably put it, “the kind of high-schooler that other kids would want to hang with” but the kind that “other kids would want to hang.”