| Opentheme: | "Jane" by Jefferson Starship |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Num Episodes: | 8 |
| Director: | David Wain |
| Cinematography: | Kevin Atkinson |
| Camera: | Single-camera |
| Runtime: | 27–30 minutes |
| Channel: | Netflix |
| Related: | (2017) |
Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp is an American satirical comedy television miniseries written by David Wain and Michael Showalter, and directed by Wain. First Day of Camp is the second installment in the Wet Hot American Summer franchise. The eight-episode Netflix series is a prequel to Wain's 2001 film Wet Hot American Summer, a parody of teen sex comedies which has since developed a cult following.[1] Although many of the original film's ensemble cast have gone on to high-profile work, all of the then-adult actors returned for this series, playing even younger versions of their original roles. The episodes were released for online viewing at the end of July 2015.[2]
After years of speculation and reports on a possible sequel to Wet Hot American Summer, shooting began on the miniseries in January 2015.[3] The entire adult cast of the film returned in the same roles. Much of the series was shot in Los Angeles. Working around the availability of the cast members, many of whom had seen a significant rise in stardom since the original film, was difficult; some sources report that Bradley Cooper, who plays Ben, had to shoot all of his scenes in one day,[4] although star and co-writer Michael Showalter has since denied this claim.[5]
Along with the series, a making-of documentary on Wet Hot American Summer, titled Hurricane of Fun: The Making of Wet Hot, was released on Netflix on July 24, 2015, consisting of behind the scenes interviews and footage shot during the filming of the movie.
See also: Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later. On April 27, 2016, it was announced that Netflix ordered a follow-up series entitled Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later, set ten years after the events of the film. The series consists of eight episodes, and was released on August 4, 2017.
Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the series has a score of 92%, based on 53 reviews, with an average rating of 7.44/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp offers more of the same goofy hijinks that fans of the cult classic crave, but outsiders might not be quite as enamored."[6] On Metacritic, the series holds a score of 74 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[7]
For the 6th Critics' Choice Television Awards, John Slattery was nominated for Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series.[8]