''Cheats'' is a 2002 American

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

about four friends that have been cheating their way through

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

, and have to face new challenges to avoid getting caught before going to

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

. The lead roles are played by

Trevor Fehrman Trevor Gregory Fehrman (born July 14, 1981) is an American actor and writer best known for his portrayal of Elias in the 2006 comedy film, ''Clerks II''. Life and career Trevor is most widely known for his role in the film ''Clerks II'' in which ...

Matthew Lawrence Matthew William Lawrence (born February 11, 1980) is an American actor and singer, known for his roles in ''Mrs. Doubtfire'' and ''Boy Meets World''. Lawrence also starred in the series '' Brotherly Love'' with his real-life brothers Joey and An ...

, and

Mary Tyler Moore Mary Tyler Moore (December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017) was an American actress, producer, and social advocate. She is best known for her roles on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1961–1966) and ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), which ...

. The original title of the movie was ''Cheaters'' but was that thought likely to be confused with the 2000 movie ''

Cheaters Cheater or Cheaters may refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''The Cheaters'' (1930 film), an Australian silent film * ''Cheaters'' (1934 film), an American film directed by Phil Rosent * ''The Cheaters'' (1945 film), directed by Joseph Ka ...

'' starring

Jeff Daniels Jeffrey Warren Daniels (born February 19, 1955) is an American actor, comedian, musician, and playwright, known for his work on stage and screen playing diverse characters switching between comedy and drama. He is the recipient of several accol ...

Plot

While other kids at the elite North Point Academy spend countless hours studying, Handsome Davis sees it as nothing more than a system of control over one's mind. That's why Handsome and his three best friends, Sammy, Victor and the cribsheet genius Applebee, have banded together and found ways to cheat on their tests all through their school years. Everything had been going along smoothly until the gang entered their final year of high school and the stakes were upped by the school's principal, Mrs. Stark. If they get caught cheating again Stark will make a note in their permanent records and possibly kill their chances of getting into college. But can Handsome convince his pals to pull off one last great cheat with him, outsmarting Stark and the system, even if it means possibly destroying their friendships?

Release

The film was scheduled to be released in 2001, but was delayed until September 20, 2002. It was released on DVD and VHS in 2003.

Documentary

On the

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

edition there is an 18-minute documentary, showing people on whose real life events the story is based, more than 10 years earlier. The real Jonathan Applebee refused to take part in the special feature documentary based on the actual Cheats, so his name had to be censored whenever used.

Main cast

as Handsome Davis *

Elden Henson Elden Henson (born Elden Ryan Ratliff, August 30, 1977) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Fulton Reed in '' The Mighty Ducks'' trilogy (1992–1996), Foggy Nelson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) streaming television series ...

as Sammy Green *

as Victor Barone *

Martin Starr Martin James Pflieger Schienle (born July 30, 1982), professionally known as Martin Starr, is an American actor and comedian. He is known for the television roles of Bill Haverchuck on the short-lived comedy drama '' Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–2 ...

as Jonathan Applebee *

as Mrs. Stark, Principal, North Point Academy *

Maggie Lawson Margaret Cassidy Lawson (born August 12, 1980) is an American actress who is best known for her role as Detective Juliet "Jules" O'Hara in the TV show '' Psych''. From 2018 to 2019, she held the recurring role of Nathalie Flynn on Fox's ''Leth ...

as Julie Merkel *

Babz Chula Babz Chula (born Barbara Ellen Zuckerman; circa 1946 – May 7, 2010) was an American-born Canadian actress. Chula spent her early childhood in the working-class neighbourhood of Jamaica, N.Y., but her widowed mother, Abby Zuckerman, a bookin ...

as Mrs. Rosengarden *

David Krumholtz David Krumholtz (born May 15, 1978) is an American actor and comedian. He played Mr. Universe in '' Serenity'', Charlie Eppes in the CBS drama series ''Numb3rs'', and starred in the ''Harold & Kumar'' and ''The Santa Clause'' film franchises. Ear ...

as Evan Rosengarden *Dixon Cohee as Greedy Herman *

Griffin Dunne Thomas Griffin Dunne (; born June 8, 1955) is an American actor, film producer, and film director. Dunne studied acting at The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City. He is known for portraying Jack Goodman in '' An Amer ...

as Mr. Davis, Handsome's father *

Morris Panych Morris Stephen Panych (born 30 June 1952) is a Canadian playwright, director and actor. Early life Panych was born in Calgary, Alberta and grew up in Edmonton, Alberta. He studied at Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, and the Univers ...

as Mr. Alex Harkin *Will Sanderson as Rexler *

Jewel Staite Jewel Belair Staite (born June 2, 1982) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles as Kaylee Frye in the Fox television series ''Firefly'' (2002–2003) and its spin-off theatrical film '' Serenity'' (2005), and as Jennifer Keller on Sc ...

as Teddy Blue *

Bill Switzer William Ashton Switzer (born March 28, 1984) is an American-Canadian voice, film, and television actor. He is known for his work on the animated television series ''Mummies Alive!'' He had a leading role in '' Eerie, Indiana: The Other Dimension'' ...

as Garret * Tseng Chang as Marty *

Barbara Tyson Barbara Tyson (born October 1, 1964) is a Canadian actress known for appearing in hit TV series '' Neon Rider'', ''Cold Squad'', '' ER'' and ''The Twilight Zone''. One of her first notable television roles was in '' Another World'' as Dawn "Ivy" ...

as Mrs. Herman * Kathryn Anderson as 2nd Grade Teacher * Brett Kelly as Young Sammy *Casey Dubois as Handsome (2nd Grade / Kindergarten) *Leonie Haworth as Julie (2nd Grade)

References

External links

* 2002 films 2002 comedy films 2000s high school films 2000s teen comedy films American high school films American teen comedy films New Line Cinema films Films about academic scandals 2000s English-language films 2000s American films {{comedy-film-stub