It's been 40 years since the group of friends skipped school and lived it up in Chicago
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It’s been 40 years since Ferris Bueller took the ultimate hooky day.
The John Hughes film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off became an instant classic when it premiered on June 11, 1986. The world watched mischievous high schooler Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick) recruit his anxious best friend, Cameron (Alan Ruck), and effortlessly cool girlfriend, Sloane (Mia Sara), to spend a school day romping around Chicago, expertly avoiding his suspicious sister (Jennifer Grey) and principal (Jeffrey Jones).
The crew managed to take advantage of all their city had to offer, exploring landmarks like The Art Institute of Chicago, Wrigley Field and Sears Tower, even lip-sync-serenading the Von Steuben Day Parade with the Beatles’ version of Twist and Shout. Somehow, all without getting caught. While they did destroy Cameron’s father’s prized 1961 Ferrari in the process, if you ask Ferris, it was worth it.
“Life moves pretty fast," he famously said. "If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
Below, see what the Ferris Bueller’s Day Off Cast has been up to in the four decades since the hit movie premiered.
01 of 09
Matthew Broderick as Ferris Bueller
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Broderick was nominated for a Golden Globe for his playful portrayal in the movie, and despite his illustrious career post-Bueller, Ferris has remained Broderick's most recognizable role.
“What’s my legacy? Well, I’m Ferris Bueller, I suppose,” Broderick told TODAY in 2023. “And I like it. I’ve made my peace with it.”
Broderick went on to star in Broadway plays and musicals, including How to Succeed in Business Without Even Trying (1995) and The Producers (2001), where he won and was nominated for a Tony, respectively.
His work on-screen didn’t end with Bueller either. Broderick voiced Simba in The Lion King (1994) and directed himself in Infinity (1996). He’s since starred in projects including Election (1999), The Music Man (2003), Tower Heist (2011), and Painkiller (2023), among others. He has guest-starred in several television comedies like 30 Rock and Only Murders in the Building, the latter of which earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 2024.
As for his personal life, Broderick has been married to Sarah Jessica Parker since May 19, 1997. The two share a son, James, and twin daughters Marion and Tabitha.
02 of 09
Alan Ruck as Cameron Frye
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Ruck played the nervous antithesis to Broderick's cool, calm and collected. He spent the majority of the film fretting about the friends' illicit afternoon and protecting his father's car. However, by the end of the film, Cameron finds his voice and stands up to his father, crashing the Ferrari through a glass window in the process.
Ruck's career began before Ferris Bueller's Day Off, when he starred on-screen in films like Bad Boys (1983) and Class (1983). After Bueller, he appeared in hits like Speed (1994), Star Trek Generations (1994) and Twister (1996), as well as television series like Spin City (1996-2002). His role as the eldest son, Connor Roy, on Succession earned him Emmy and Golden Globe nominations.
Similarly to Broderick, he's also spent time on stage. Notably, he replaced Broderick in The Producers in 2005. He also starred in Absurd Person Singular, where he met his wife, Mireille Enos. The couple share two children, daughter Vesper and son Larkin. Ruck is also a father to daughter Emma and son Sam from a previous relationship
03 of 09
Mia Sara as Sloane Peterson
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Sara played Sloane, Ferris' chic, chill and game-for-any-adventure girlfriend.
Before the film, Sara made her film and television debut in All My Children (1983) and Ridley Scott's Legend (1985). After Ferris Bueller's Day Off stardom, she starred in projects like Timecop (1994) and Birds of Prey.
She then took time away from Hollywood for over a decade, but returned in 2025 to star as Sarah Krantz in the Stephen King adaptation The Life of Chuck.
She told PEOPLE that growing up in Hollywood, her kids had many friends with actor parents, and they were "kind of bummed" that she stopped working. "They're really excited and they're really proud of me for working again, so that is nice," she said.
Today, she lives in a farmhouse in England where she writes poetry. In 2010, she married Brian Henson, son of Muppets creator Jim Henson, and the two share a daughter. Before Henson, she was married to Jason Connery, with whom she shares a son.
04 of 09
Jennifer Grey as Jeanie Bueller
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Grey played Ferris' adamantly suspicious and never vindicated sister, Jeanie Bueller.
This film launched her into the Hollywood scene, and it was just two years later that she starred in her iconic role of Frances "Baby" Houseman in Dirty Dancing (1987). She went on to act in projects including Bloodhounds of Broadway (1989), Bounce (2000), and A Real Pain (2024).
On television, Grey has done voiceover work for shows like American Dad and Phineas and Ferb, and in 2010, her Dirty Dancing skills came in handy when she won season 11 of Dancing with the Stars.
As for her personal life, Grey and Broderick briefly dated around the release of Ferris Bueller's Day Off. In 2001, she married Clark Gregg, and they remained together for 20 years before divorcing in 2020. During their marriage, they starred in Road to Christmas (2006) together and welcomed a daughter, Stella.
05 of 09
Ben Stein as the Economics Teacher
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Ben Stein's monotone "Bueller … Bueller …" while taking attendance as Ferris' economics teacher will live on as one of the most quoted lines in movie history.
At the time of the movie, Stein wasn't an actor, but rather an economist, presidential speechwriter and lawyer. However, he was visiting a producer friend on set one day when director Hughes overheard his "very, very funny voice," and asked him to play the role, Stein recalled to Entertainment Tonight in 2025. Stein improvised the lecture on tariffs he gives during the film, based solely on his fluent knowledge of the topic.
After the movie, Stein continued with his newfound knack for performance. He went on to act in films including The Mask (1994), Son of The Mask (2005), Planes Trains and Automobiles (1987), Ghostbusters II (1989) and Casper (1995). From 1997 to 2003, Stein hosted the Comedy Central game show Win Ben Stein's Money alongside Jimmy Kimmel, which earned him six Emmy awards.
Stein is an acclaimed author and currently writes a column called "Ben Stein's Diary" for The American Spectator.
06 of 09
Cindy Pickett as Katie Bueller
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Cindy Pickett played Ferris' loving, trusting and hilariously oblivious mother in the film. Katie was so sure of her son, that she'd roll her eyes at Grey's character's accusations of his mischief.
After Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pickett starred in DeepStar Six (1989), Sleepwalkers (1992) and Son in Law (1993).
In 1986, she married her on-screen husband, Lyman Ward, and the pair welcomed two children. They divorced in 1992, the same year they portrayed a married couple in Sleepwalkers.
07 of 09
Lyman Ward as Tom Bueller
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Lyman Ward played Ferris' dad, whose busy work schedule kept him conveniently distracted from his teenage son's ploys.
After the film, Ward continued to work in show business, starring in projects like Creature (1984), Independence Day (1996), Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990) and Not Another Teen Movie (2001), where he spoofed his role of Tom Bueller.
08 of 09
Edie McClurg as Grace
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McClurg played the sharp, unbothered school secretary, Grace, who remained exhausted with Principal Ed Rooney's chaotic antics and obsession with Ferris.
Known for her comedic improvisation, McClurg said Hughes let her play around with the character choices. The famous pencils stuffed in Grace's hair? That was all her. "I had this big poofy thing on my head — my hair," she told the Chicago Tribune, "and one day while he was talking to me about something, I just kept putting more and more pencils up there. He seemed to like that."
After Ferris Bueller's Day Off, she appeared alongside her fellow castmates in Planes, Trains and Automobiles, where she played a rental car agent. However, she spent the majority of career as a voice actor, where she's voiced characters in films including The Little Mermaid (1989), A Bug's Life (1998), Cars (2006), Cars 2 (2011), Wreck-It Ralph (2012) and Frozen (2013).
09 of 09
Jeffrey Jones as Principal Ed Rooney
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Jeffrey Jones played Principal Ed Rooney, Ferris' nemesis, who is dead set on catching Bueller in his foolery, but ultimately fails at his mission.
After the film, Jones went on to act in multiple projects, most notably 1988's Beetlejuice.
In November 2002, he was arrested and charged with soliciting a minor and possession of child pornography. In July 2003, Jones pleaded no contest to soliciting a minor and prosecutors agreed to drop the possession of child pornography charge, and he was sentenced to five years of probation.
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