6 Kelly Preston Movies Guaranteed to Put a Smile On Your Face
Kelly Preston fans were shocked when the actor died on July 12. Preston lost a two year battle with breast cancer, which she kept private. Preston has been delighting movie audiences since her appearance in the 1983 horror film Christine, based on the Stephen King novel. Preston did it all from horror to comedy to drama to sci-fi.
Preston’s greatest gift may have been her endearing warmth that made her audiences love her whenever she showed up. To celebrate Preston’s life and career, here are six of her movies that will put a smile on your face, even if it’s bittersweet in light of her passing.
Kelly Preston became everyone’s dream girl in ‘Mischief’
This 1985 teen comedy was the first time Preston officially played the dream girl, and she became fans’ dream girl ever since. Jonathan (Doug McKeon) pines for Marilyn (Preston) and he gets his chance when Gene (Chris Nash) teaches him to be cool.
Marilyn and Jonathan’s love scene may be the best PSA for safe sex in any rom-com. It’s so innocent, yet a very common mistake teenagers make.
Kelly Preston blasts off in ‘Spacecamp’
Space Camp is a real program in Huntsville, Alabama where aspiring astronauts can start training in simulations. The 1986 movie SpaceCamp is about a group of campers who actually get launched into space. Preston plays one of the teenagers who must put their training into practice to survive orbit and find a way to return to Earth. The rousing adventure is a thrill, and a feel-good triumph for a group of underdogs.
She even won over Arnold Schwarzenegger in ‘Twins’
Twins was Arnold Schwarzenegger’s first comedy. He played Julius, a science experiment who was bred from the best and brightest specimens the world had to offer. He returns to American when he learns he had a twin brother, Vincent (Danny DeVito).
Vincent is dating Linda (Chloe Webb) who has a twin sister of her own, Marnie (Kelly Preston). Marnie falls for Julius’s and seduces him. The smile on Julius’s face after speaks for itself, but this classic comedy is sweet throughout.
Kelly Preston dumped ‘Jerry Maguire’
Preston has a hilariously acrobatic sex scene with Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire. She plays Avery, Jerry (Cruise)’s fiance when he’s on top as a sports agent. As soon as he gets fired and loses most of his clients, she’s out of there and only reappears to remind Jerry she thinks he’s a loser.
The romance of Jerry Maguire is between Jerry and Dorothy (Renee Zellweger), or also between Jerry and Dorothy’s son, Ray (Jonathan Lipnicki). It wouldn’t be half as sweet without Avery exemplifying the shallow world Jerry leaves behind, and Preston does so relentlessly.
She made Matthew Broderick ‘Addicted to Love’
In another “other woman” role, Preston plays Linda who leaves her boyfriend Sam (Matthew Broderick) for Anton (Tchéky Karyo). Sam teams up with Anton’s ex, Maggie (Meg Ryan), to plot revenge. Sam actually hopes to win Linda back, but Meg Ryan plays Maggie. What do you think is going to happen?
Another solid rom-com in both Ryan and Preston’s oeuvre, Addicted to Love may not stand out against competition like When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle or the above Preston movies. For that reason, it’s a worthwhile discovery if you’re looking for a new-to-you Preston movie.
Kelly Preston helped Amanda Bynes find ‘What a Girl Wants’
In a way, Preston passed the torch on to then rising star Amanda Bynes. Preston plays Libby, who tells her daughter Daphne (Bynes) when she is 17 that her father was actually Henry (Colin Firth), the Lord of Dashwood.
Daphne goes to London to meet her father and brings her charming American style to the uptight British world. Yes, Libby and Henry reconnect too, so What a Girl Wants is an all-around feel good movie for both generations.
