Twenty Years Later, A Cinderella Story Still Slaps
The 2004 movie is all about believing in yourself — and we remain obsessed.
Chances are you probably remember the moment you first laid eyes on Nomad. Or, we should say, Chad Michael Murray as A Cinderella Story heartthrob Austin Ames. It was, for many a young millennial, a pivotal — and perhaps sexually awakening? — moment. The 2004 film, a modern-day adaptation of the children’s fairytale Cinderella, swapped a glass slipper for a bedazzled flip phone, and house chores for bussing tables at an L.A. diner, taking viewers along as golden boy Ames first connected over IM (a Y2K #tbt if there ever was one!) and then fell in love with unpopular classmate Sam Montgomery (played by Hilary Duff).
Watching Duff’s Sam get her man while remaining true to herself and achieving her dream of going to Princeton was straight-up thrilling. Almost as thrilling as watching her put her evil step-monster (played by the iconic Jennifer Coolidge) in her place by the time the credits rolled. And 20 years later on the A Cinderella Story anniversary, the teen romance still holds up for a few specific reasons. Here’s why.
Chad Michael Murray and Hilary Duff had chemistry
Murray’s character may have been a jock (captain of the football team, to be exact) and low-key poet, but there was one subject the character clearly excelled in: chemistry.
The pairing of Murray and Duff as the movie’s hero and heroine was a stroke of pure genius, with the two then still relatively unknown movie actors expertly tapping into the innocent, giddy, completely overwhelming feeling of first love. Despite the fact that their characters probably needed to get their eyesight checked (seriously, how did Murray’s Austin *not* immediately recognize Sam at the Halloween dance?), the moment when the couple first lay eyes on each other and meet in person — all to Jesse McCartney’s “Best Day of My Life” — is still magical. You cannot tell me otherwise!
Happy 20th birthday to a moment that impacted pop culture forever! 💕 #ACinderellaStory pic.twitter.com/KmESK0w6Wn
— Petty Pumpkins 🎃☕️ (@PettyPumpkins) July 16, 2024
At the time the movie was released, Murray and Duff were still young people themselves — 22 and 16 respectively — and Duff reportedly had a huge crush on her co-star during filming. Which is, just oh so cute. Crushing hard on each other IRL or not, the coupling just worked, with both actors giving us one of the most identifiable — and beloved – young love pairings of the early 2000s. The movie also cemented Murray — who’d previously starred in Gilmore Girls, Freaky Friday and One Tree Hill — as a big screen heartthrob, and Duff — who’d go on to star in The Perfect Man — as a teen romcom leading lady.
A Cinderella Story gave us some of the best pop culture lines
Let’s be honest, as great as Murray and Duff are in this movie, A Cinderella Story would be nothing without its supporting cast, namely White Lotus star Jennifer Coolidge as Sam’s evil — and Botox-loving — stepmother Fiona. Coolidge’s character, who favours pink, money and having absolutely nothing to do with Sam, gave the film some of its most iconic moments. Who can forget Coolidge, tanning goggles on like a character from A Bug’s Life, telling Sam: “You’re not very pretty, and you’re not very bright.”
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Murray and Duff’s characters also have some of their own memorable moments. Has any millennial made it through a text exchange without at least once thinking about Duff’s iconic flip phone text exchange and very literal “LOL” text? And then of course there was that monologue. You know the one: Sam, fed up with Austin not standing up for what he wants, barges into the boys’ locker room before the big football game and confronts her paramour, telling a (very pouty, very hunky) Austin that she can’t wait around for him, “Because waiting for you is like waiting for rain in this drought, useless and disappointing.” Like we said, iconic.
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The core message of A Cinderella Story was actually ahead of its time
And while we’re all here for some early 2000s teen romance, what truly makes A Cinderella Story both a timeless classic and beloved comfort movie is the message behind it: You need to love yourself and believe in your dreams, because at the end of the day, being true to yourself is all that really matters.
It’s a realization Sam comes to in the final minutes of the film, confronting Austin and encouraging him to be honest about what he wants, despite what his father tells him. Although the movie focuses heavily on the love story between Sam and Austin, in the end, the true love story is between Sam and herself. Sam finds the strength to leave her toxic family and pursue her dreams on her own — and she doesn’t need a guy to help her do that, deciding to leave the big football game early. Of course, true fans know what happens next: Sam is intercepted by Austin, who’s inspired by her courage to be brave himself, in a squeal-inducing, truly cinematic romcom moment in the rain.
Sam already had everything she needed — self-love and faith in herself to pursue her dreams. Getting the guy was just the cherry on top. And that’s a message we can get behind 20 years later.
