Paul Rudd & Jeremy Sisto Have ‘Clueless’ Reunion At Tribeca Festival

In the 1995 cult classic “Clueless,” Paul Rudd and Jeremy Sisto play Josh and Elton, two teens in differing social groups vying for Cher’s (played by Alicia Silverstone) heart. Now, over 30 years later, the two find themselves at odds on screen yet again in their latest film “Rain Reign,” which held its premiere at the Tribeca Festival this month. In the heartfelt drama, Sisto plays Wesley, a single father who struggles to take care of his young neurodivergent daughter, Rose, and Rudd her kind uncle who accompanies her on a mission find her missing dog.

“When Paul came on board, that was super exciting for me,” Sisto told Access Hollywood on the carpet ahead of the screening.

“Obviously, we started our careers out together in a way, and we sort of represented opposing sides of a value system in that world, and kind of our opposing sides of a coin on this as well, and he’s just a really great, humble sort of actor to work with.”

Sisto was surprised to learn after “Clueless” that both he and Rudd nearly crossed paths again while auditioning for the role of Jack Dawson in James Cameron’s 1997 hit “Titanic.”

“James [Cameron] didn’t want me to audition for it. He had cast me in a movie before, but he didn’t think I was right for this. So I wrote him this letter, and it was before the internet, really, so I made up a quote by [François] Truffaut. Before, you couldn’t easily check things like that, and it was very directly about the situation and why he should give me a shot.”

The role of Jack ultimately came down to Sisto and Leonardo DiCaprio, who went on to land the part. But Sisto got close enough to read with a handful of other actresses, and film a screen test with Kate Winslet, the story of which has since made the rounds online.

“You know, I was so insecure at the time, like just a whole huge feeling of imposter syndrome going on. But she came, I think, third,” Sisto recalled, “it was impressive to watch somebody walk into a situation and own it.”

Despite the confidence in the moment, Sisto remembered her shoving down any nerves to give a knockout screen test.

“My nervousness is totally self-sabotaging,” Sisto laughed, “but her nervousness was all focused into the performance. And yeah, you can see it in there.”

Sisto saw a similar quality in 14-year-old Felice Kakaletris, who is the beating heart of “Rain Reign.”

“Felice was amazing,” Sisto praised. “What’s interesting about her is she just has so much going on behind her eyes. That’s really hard to teach and hard to fake, and it’s really captivating to watch.” Rudd added, “I had a feeling that Felice was going to be terrific at the film, and she is.”

Authentic casting was top of mind for director Erika Burke Rossa, a former social worker who wanted to approach the story through that lens. “I want people to hear joy and hope,” Rossa expressed, “and this idea that these little quiet acts of kindness are really special and really heroic.”

Kakaletris appreciated the communal aspect of the film. “I personally love this movie because it brings everyone together, and it shows that even if you’re neurodivergent, you can still do anything that you like to do,” she said.

Rudd, for his part, has been a longtime advocate for neurodiversity and hopes the film sends a similar message: “To be kind to one another and do whatever we can to make this place a better place to be.”

“Rain Reign” was featured as a Spotlight Narrative at Tribeca Festival and is currently seeking distribution.