Today is something of a holiday in bad movie circles, for today is the day that the cinematic burning bag of turds Mac and Me was released in American theaters. Oof.

Described by some as "a blatant, soulless, calculated rip-off of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial with a hefty glob of product placement slathered across every frame like so much barbecue sauce over a McRib," it was the brainchild of producer R. J. Louis who'd previously with McDonald's on some of their ad campaigns.

Louis tapped director Stewart Raffill to direct, who described the warm welcome he received to the production this way: "I said, 'Well, what's the script?' And he said, 'We don't have a script. I don't like the script. You have to write the script. You're gonna have to write it quickly so prep the movie and write the script on the weekends.'" Which may explain why Mac and Me looks a lot like it just straight up copied E.T.'s homework.

Also according to Raffill, Louis insisted that the child lead of the film should be disabled, leading to the casting of Jade Calegory, a young actor with spina bifida, which required him to use a wheelchair to get around. It was seen as a major step for visibility of folks with disabilities in film.

So it was a serious flop at the box office in addition to being a terrible movie. And yet—AND YET—it has nevertheless developed a cult following. I blame the fact that for movie viewers of a certain age, a VHS of Mac and Me was a constant presence in many family video libraries, actual libraries, and residential daycare establishments. (Didn't we all know that one kid who would insist on watching Mac and Me at every sleepover?)

It was featured as the first episode of MST3K's "The Gauntlet" Netflix season. Riffs or no, I find this film hard to watch.