TV Shows With an Episode Inspired by ‘The Breakfast Club’: From ‘Abbott Elementary’ to ‘How I Met Your Mother’

Credit: Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock ; ABC/Matt Sayles ; Monty Brinton/CBS

TV Shows With an Episode Inspired by 'The Breakfast Club': From 'Abbott Elementary' to 'How I Met Your Mother'

Don't you, forget about me. From Abbott Elementary to Riverdale, John Hughes' The Breakfast Club left a lasting impression on the small screen. The 1995 cult classic focused on five teenagers from very different backgrounds who end up serving detention together at their high school. The cast of The Breakfast Club — which included Anthony Michael Hall, Emilio Estevez, Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald and Judd Nelson — quickly found success for their involvement in the iconic coming-of-age story. Ringwald, who collaborated with Hughes on other movies such as Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Pretty in Pink, later explained why she didn't think The Breakfast Club aged well since its release. In a 2018 essay for The New Yorker, the actress recalled her initial concerns about watching the film with her daughter. “I hadn’t anticipated that it would ultimately be most troubling to me," the California native, who shares kids Mathilda, Adele and Roman with husband Panio Gianopoulos, wrote in reference to scenes she found to be problematic years later. “If attitudes toward female subjugation are systemic, and I believe that they are, it stands to reason that the art we consume and sanction plays some part in reinforcing those same attitudes.” She continued: “How are we meant to feel about art that we both love and oppose? What if we are in the unusual position of having helped create it? Erasing history is a dangerous road when it comes to art—change is essential, but so, too, is remembering the past, in all of its transgression and barbarism, so that we may properly gauge how far we have come, and also how far we still need to go.” After joining The CW's Riverdale in 2017, Ringwald's legendary film was the subject on a special episode in the series' third season. The show's flashback episode titled "The Midnight Club" paid tribute to The Breakfast Club by having the main actors play younger versions of their onscreen parents. “It’s an episode called 'The Midnight Club.' Which is our take on sort of The Breakfast Club. Obviously the much-darker Riverdale version of that," showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa shared at the Television Critics Association press tour in 2018. "Camila [Mendes] will be playing a young Hermione (Marisol Nichols), Cole [Sprouse] will be playing a young FP (Skeeth Ulrich), KJ [Apa] will be dying his hair brown and playing a young Fred Andrews (Luke Perry). And we’re going to learn about a really, really dark secret in Riverdale that the parents have been keeping since they were in high school.” Scroll on for more TV shows that paid homage to The Breakfast Club over the years:

Credit: Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock ; ABC/Matt Sayles ; Monty Brinton/CBS

TV Shows With an Episode Inspired by 'The Breakfast Club': From 'Abbott Elementary' to 'How I Met Your Mother'

Don't you, forget about me. From Abbott Elementary to Riverdale, John Hughes' The Breakfast Club left a lasting impression on the small screen. The 1995 cult classic focused on five teenagers from very different backgrounds who end up serving detention together at their high school. The cast of The Breakfast Club — which included Anthony Michael Hall, Emilio Estevez, Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald and Judd Nelson — quickly found success for their involvement in the iconic coming-of-age story. Ringwald, who collaborated with Hughes on other movies such as Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Pretty in Pink, later explained why she didn't think The Breakfast Club aged well since its release. In a 2018 essay for The New Yorker, the actress recalled her initial concerns about watching the film with her daughter. “I hadn’t anticipated that it would ultimately be most troubling to me," the California native, who shares kids Mathilda, Adele and Roman with husband Panio Gianopoulos, wrote in reference to scenes she found to be problematic years later. “If attitudes toward female subjugation are systemic, and I believe that they are, it stands to reason that the art we consume and sanction plays some part in reinforcing those same attitudes.” She continued: “How are we meant to feel about art that we both love and oppose? What if we are in the unusual position of having helped create it? Erasing history is a dangerous road when it comes to art—change is essential, but so, too, is remembering the past, in all of its transgression and barbarism, so that we may properly gauge how far we have come, and also how far we still need to go.” After joining The CW's Riverdale in 2017, Ringwald's legendary film was the subject on a special episode in the series' third season. The show's flashback episode titled "The Midnight Club" paid tribute to The Breakfast Club by having the main actors play younger versions of their onscreen parents. “It’s an episode called 'The Midnight Club.' Which is our take on sort of The Breakfast Club. Obviously the much-darker Riverdale version of that," showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa shared at the Television Critics Association press tour in 2018. "Camila [Mendes] will be playing a young Hermione (Marisol Nichols), Cole [Sprouse] will be playing a young FP (Skeeth Ulrich), KJ [Apa] will be dying his hair brown and playing a young Fred Andrews (Luke Perry). And we’re going to learn about a really, really dark secret in Riverdale that the parents have been keeping since they were in high school.” Scroll on for more TV shows that paid homage to The Breakfast Club over the years:

Credit: Art Streiber/The CW

'Riverdale'

The season 3 special — which included a cameo from Hall — focused on the parents when they were in high school. A chance meeting in weekend detention introduced the group to Gryphons and Gargoyles and led to some unexpected sparks between several characters.

Credit: ABC/Matt Sayles

'Abbott Elementary'

During the season 1 finale, Mr. Johnson was put in charge of a group of children who couldn't go on a school field trip to the zoo. The janitor requested that the kids write an essay on their favorite superhero — which turned out to be their teachers. The episode ended with Mr. Johnson mimicking Bender's fist pump.

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'Dawson's Creek'

Dawson, Joey, Jen and Pacey all ended up in detention at Capeside High in season 1. Things took a turn onscreen as the group played a game of Truth or Dare.

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'The Vampire Diaries'

In season 4, Stefan, Elena, Tyler and Caroline ended up trapped in the library by Rebekah. Chaos ensued as the Mikaelson family member tortured the friend group throughout the night — which made them rely on each other to escape.

Credit: Justin Lubin/NBC

'Community'

A season 1 dance sequence between Jeff and Abed served as a direct tribute to The Breakfast Club. The drunken moment mirrored the scene when the students danced to "We Are Not Alone" after smoking Bender's stash of marijuana.

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'Cougar Town'

During season 4, the Cul-De-Sac Crew offered a glimpse at their state of mind through voiceovers that took inspiration from The Breakfast Club.

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'How I Met Your Mother'

In a season 7 flashback moment, Ted reminded Lily about the group's attempt to go trick or treating on Halloween as characters from The Breakfast Club but they all dressed up as Bender.