The film stars Jesse Metcalfe, Brittany Snow, Ashanti, Sophia Bush, Arielle Kebbel, and Jenny McCarthy.

The plot centers around a trio of teenage girls who plan to break the heart of school basketball star John Tucker after they learn he has been secretly dating all three and pledging each is "the one".

While at work, Kate sees popular local boy John Tucker on dates with three different girls: chronic overachiever Carrie, head cheerleader Heather, and promiscuous liberal vegan activist Beth.

To counteract this, Carrie secretly videotapes John bragging to his friends in the locker room, saying he will be "scoring more than baskets" at the upcoming away game.

At a hotel on the night of the away game, Kate seduces John on a video-chat, instructing him to put on a lacy pair of girl's thong panties and climb out of his room and into hers.

[10] Angel Cohn of TV Guide gave the film a three stars rating out of four, writing that the 19 to 27 year old age range of the six leads meant that "not one member of this teen picture's cast appears remotely young enough to be in high school", though adding that "veteran director Betty Thomas' light revenge comedy is surprisingly entertaining, if less than original."

Cohn concluded, "Teen comedies are notoriously predictable, and screenwriter Jeff Lowell isn't out to rock the genre boat, but his smartly written dialogue and the infectious charm of the cast, particularly Snow and Metcalfe, add up to a winning combination.

"[11] Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times wrote that the film is "unforgivably clueless about teen culture" and "can't even sustain the courage of its girl-power convictions."

Catsoulis was also critical of Metcalfe's "unconvincing" performance, writing that he musters "fewer expressions than a Botox infomercial.

"[12] Michael Medved gave John Tucker Must Die two stars out of four, calling it "slick, stupid and slightly sleazy," and that at the half-way mark, the plot collapses.

The marketers and publicists would have us believe this is a dark, edgy teen comedy about a band of two-timed girls taking revenge on the school's biggest hunk.

He goes on to mention "The movie may be able to bamboozle a few teen female fans into multiplexes, but it's hard to imagine any of them – even those who swoon at the sight of Jesse Metcalfe – labeling this as better than forgettable.

In March 2024, Metcalfe claimed a script had been written for a sequel and it was "circulating" Hollywood, stating he had yet to read it but would like to be in the film.

[20] A few days later during a panel at Epic Cons Chicago, Metcalfe, Bush and Kebbel claimed the existence of the script and revealed that it involved all of the original cast.