‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’ secrets are revealed 40 years later

“I know how it starts, I know how it ends – the rest I never know, but that doesn’t seem to matter,” Hughes once said of his writing process. “I often fly by the seat of my pants.”

That loose, inspired energy is completely gone Ferris Bueller’s day offwhich follows Ferris (Matthew Broderick), his neurotic best friend Cameron (Alan Ruck) and girlfriend Sloane (Mia Sara) as they leave school for an unforgettable day tearing through Chicago – all while trying to stay one step ahead of suspicious dean of students Ed Rooney (Jeffrey Jones).

Hughes had Broderick in mind from the start and the role became one of the actor’s most iconic. But even though Ferris and his on-screen friends were high school students, most of the cast was well past college age. Broderick was 24, Jennifer Gray – who played Ferris’ fed-up sister, Gray – was 26 and Ruck was 29.

Only Sara was close to her character’s age at 18. Hughes had assumed he needed an older actress for Sloane’s poise and confidence, and was stunned to learn that Sara herself had barely graduated from high school.