Sage Advice and Sass: Best Graduation Send-Offs on Film
From Elle Woods to Rory Gilmore, we love these grad speeches!
It’s graduation season, which means distinguished students and faculty are preparing speeches about life and the future to deliver at commencement ceremonies all over the world. When preparing a speech, a great place to turn to is pop culture! TV and film are full of fantastic graduation speeches, many of them very memorable and quotable. We put together some of the best, and picked out the most memorable quotes. What are your favorite pop culture graduation speeches? Tell us in the comments!
Andrea Zuckerman, Beverly Hills, 90210
It’s no surprise that the BH90210 resident brainiac Andrea Zuckerman is the valedictorian the year our favorite West Beverly seniors graduate. Initially nervous about her speech, she gets a bit of confidence from Brandon and of course, knocks it out of the park. Of course she does—it’s Andrea! While the character always felt a bit on the outs in the social group, she always prioritized her studies and academic prowess. In her speech, though, she highlights her friendships, signifying that the inclusion she always craved is what she’ll remember most.
Memorable quote: “We haven't just learned facts and figures, logic and reasoning skills. But we have learned the value of friendship... friendship, loyalty and love, which will not be diminished just because we may not end up together. The memories that we have shared will not go away, simply because we do.”
Rory Gilmore, Gilmore Girls
Overachiever Rory Gilmore manages to squeeze past Paris Gellar for the coveted valedictorian spot at Chilton. Her graduation speech is beloved by fans, as it sums up three years of the series in a heartfelt package. She opens it with “I live in two worlds. One is a world of books,” a quote Gilmore fan bibliophiles live by. But the rest of the speech is a tribute to those that got her where she is: her grandparents, and her mother. (We’re not crying. Well, we’re crying but not blubbering.) This speech serves as a great summary of three seasons spent with these characters and a culmination of the series’ main plot point: Lorelai securing funding from her parents for Rory’s education, putting them all together every Friday night for dinner.
Memorable quote: “My mother never gave me any idea that I couldn’t do whatever I wanted to do or be whomever I wanted to be. She filled our house with love and fun and books and music, unflagging in her efforts to give me role models from Jane Austen to Eudora Welty to Patti Smith. As she guided me through these incredible eighteen years, I don’t know if she ever realized that the person I most wanted to be was her.”
Mayor Wilkins, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The Season 3 finale of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is the culmination of the season’s “big bad:” the ascension of the Mayor and the unleashing of many, many vampires onto Sunnydale. It’s fitting, really: the Mayor’s speech is both a reflection and a commencement–it’s just that most of the students don’t know what’s about to commence. But Buffy and the Scooby gang are more than ready; as he drags out his speech, Willow snidely comments, “Man, just ascend already.” Well, after a few choice words, he does. And it’s ugly.
Memorable quote: “Today is about change. Graduation doesn't just mean your circumstances change. It means you do. You ascend... to a higher level... Nothing will ever be the same. Nothing…”
Elle Woods, Legally Blonde
Legally Blonde is timeless because it’s a classic story: a person who thinks she wants one thing ends up finding her true self in the pursuit of it. In this case, Elle Woods thinks she only wants to be Warner’s wife, and so to prove she’s a serious candidate for the position she follows him (and gets in) to Harvard Law (…what, like it’s hard?) But as her determination to win his heart by being great at law school turns into an exercise in living up to her true potential, Elle realizes that a belief in oneself is the greatest prize.
Memorable quote: “You must always have faith in people. And, most importantly, you must always have faith in yourself…We did it!”
Molly, Booksmart
What might be most memorable about Molly Davidson’s graduation speech in Booksmart is….she isn’t immediately present to give it. Academic overachievers Molly and best friend Amy have spent four years getting straight A’s, so they decide the eve of graduation is their one chance to cram all the partying and bad decisions they can into one memorable night. They’re late to graduation, so love interest Jared starts with Molly’s very feminist speech. Eventually, Molly makes it to the podium and delivers an impromptu, heartfelt speech about focusing so much on academics and not seeing her classmates as they were, until now.
Memorable quote: “You’re all pretty great. Don’t let college f*ck it up.”
Robbie/Cal, Crazy Stupid Love
Young Robbie, over the course of the plot of this movie, has had his heart trampled upon. His parents breaking up was a blow to his psyche, and his unrequited love for his babysitter has him especially down. As he begins his graduation speech, it isn’t exactly inspiring: “I grew up a lot this year, I think. I used to think that growing up meant really growing. Like getting taller and bigger. But now I think that growing up just makes you smaller. Your dreams get smaller, and what you want gets smaller...I grew an inch and a half this year, but I feel a lot smaller.” His dad, Cal, sees this going badly and immediately runs to his rescue in a touching moment. Realizing Robbie feels the way he does because of his own actions, he takes the spotlight to relieve his son of the embarrassing moment. It’s comedic and touching, just like the rest of the film.
Memorable quote: “My son’s graduation speech sucks.”
Jessica Stanley, Twilight: Eclipse
In the Twilight saga film Eclipse, best friend of Bella–Jessica Stanley–gives the high school graduation speech. The Twilight saga centers around Bella and her questionable decisions, making mistakes, and falling in love; Jessica’s speech encapsulates all of these themes in a compact speech that beautifully maps out how to live a full life and find the correct path for oneself. Her message is: “we don’t really know what we want,” which is a theme throughout the series as Bella oscillates between love interests and future paths. But making mistakes is how you figure it out. The speech perfectly sums up the purpose of being young, and in Twilight, some of the characters will be young forever.
Memorable quote: “This isn't the time to make hard and fast decisions; this is a time to make mistakes. Take the wrong train and get stuck somewhere. Fall in love... a lot. Major in philosophy, because there’s no way to make a career out of that. Change your mind, and change it again, because nothing’s permanent.”
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