Ferris Bueller's Day Off Wasn't The Filming Experience Mia Sara Hoped It Would Be

"Ferris Bueller's Day Off" is one of the most defining films of the 1980s, not to mention an essential piece of late director John Hughes' filmography, right alongside other iconic flicks like "The Breakfast Club" and "Sixteen Candles." Decades after its initial release, many of the stars of "Ferris Bueller" look back on the film fondly. Lead actors Matthew Broderick and Alan Ruck, for instance, have even humorously kicked around the idea of a sequel focusing on elderly versions of best friends Ferris Bueller and Cameron Frye. Should such a project ever materialize, however, the duo would likely have to count out their former co-lead Mia Sara, who played Ferris' girlfriend, Sloane Peterson. In recent years, the actor has been refreshingly open about the fact that her experience working on the beloved eighties flick was less than ideal. 

In a June 2026 interview with The Times, Sara confessed to having a rather standoffish relationship with Hughes. And, of course, whether you're an office worker or an actor, being at odds with your boss rarely yields positive results. "I don't really give interviews because making 'Ferris Bueller' was not that good an experience for me. But I'm very aware of what a precious thing this movie is, and I don't want to disappoint people. But I didn't get along well with John," Sara shared. "John was a strange guy," she continued. "He wanted us all to hang out together and to introduce us to the French New Wave films. But the others were seasoned actors and I was a snotty New York kid and had seen all those movies, so he was frustrated in that desire. I didn't have the emotional maturity to deal with other people's egos, or my own."

Notably, Mia Sara's chat with The Times wasn't the first time she discussed how her young age negatively affected her experience on "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." Notably, while the central characters are high school students, Sara (who was about 18 during production) was the only one who could have actually fit that bill in real life. Matthew Broderick, for instance, was well into his early twenties at the time, while Alan Ruck was just shy of 30! And, according to Sara, her relative lack of maturity didn't exactly do her any favors on set. During an interview with Yahoo! Life, which came out slightly earlier in June 2026, the actor also acknowledged that she didn't fare especially well when it came to being perceived in general, and that the fame that came with "Ferris Bueller" didn't help. 

"I don't think I did very well with it. I was not comfortable. I wasn't mature enough to really take advantage of it," she opined. Regarding the actual filming process, "I did not have the greatest time making that movie, because I was in the most awkward stage of my actual adolescence. [...] I was younger than the other main cast members, and they were all a lot more experienced than I was. And it showed in my behavior. When I look back on it, it's a very cringy experience for me." 

Indeed, if you've been wondering what really happened to Mia Sara, she has voluntarily vanished from Hollywood from time to time, perhaps most notably taking a decade-long hiatus from acting that she ultimately broke by starring in 2024's "The Life of Chuck." For someone who doesn't remember "Ferris Bueller" fondly, that's quite a few days off!