After a 31-year hiatus from cinemas, the Naked Gun series is gearing up for a comeback in movie theaters. Unlike many major studios who have stepped away from comedy films on the big screen, director Akiva Schaffer (known for The Lonely Island) and screenwriters like Dan Gregor are determined to show that there’s still room for humor-filled cop movies in today’s cinema. Moreover, this reboot presents an opportunity for Paramount Pictures executives to revitalize a well-established brand that once generated substantial profits for the company.
The film “The Naked Gun” holds significant value for Paramount Pictures, to such an extent that the version featuring Liam Neeson isn’t the first attempt they made to revamp it. In fact, for more than a decade prior to this recent “Naked Gun,” Paramount had attempted several times to reinvigorate this storyline.
The Unrealized Ed Helms Era of Naked Gun Cinema
In late 2013, whispers started circulating that Paramount Pictures was planning a reboot of “The Naked Gun.” This announcement came at the same time as they released “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues” in cinemas. It seemed that exploiting established comedy film franchises was high on Paramount’s agenda. With Leslie Nielsen’s passing in 2010, a new “Naked Gun” movie wouldn’t be able to capitalize on the same nostalgia as “Anchorman 2” with Will Ferrell donning that ’70s mustache. However, Paramount still saw potential in reviving this series for financial gain.
In the main position for this project was Ed Helms, who was extremely popular following his leading roles in the “Hangover” films. Looking back, it seems unusual to picture how or why Helms could have been seen as the successor to Leslie Nielsen. For one reason, he wasn’t of an older age, which seemed to be a requirement for these film roles. Additionally, Helms wasn’t renowned for his dramatic weight, a quality that Nielsen skillfully contrasted with comedic material. However, due to his high demand in the early 2010s, Helms was slated to portray the next version of Frank Drebin.
Over time, not much progress was made on the project, leading to the proposed revival of the “Naked Gun” franchise eventually failing. One potential factor that could have contributed to this was another film starring Helms, the 2015 comedy “Vacation.” This movie, a continuation of the “National Lampoon’s Vacation” series, earned $104.7 million at the box office against a budget of $31 million. However, its domestic earnings of $58.9 million didn’t meet the blockbuster-level success Warner Bros./New Line Cinema expected from “We’re the Millers.” Given that “Vacation” underperformed financially, it may have been viewed as a risky move to tie Helms to another reboot of a well-loved comedy series.
David Zucker Tries To Revive Naked Gun
Back in early 2017, David Zucker, the original director of The Naked Gun, casually mentioned that he and Pat Profit were teaming up with Paramount for a fourth Naked Gun film. However, unlike the previous films, this project was being developed post-Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Instead of opting for reboots, there was a preference for legacy sequels. So, Zucker explained that this time, the story would focus on Frank Drebin Jr., rather than casting a new actor to fill the original Drebin role.
Later on, Zucker asserted that his ideas for a new “Naked Gun” film were turned down by Paramount executives. Specifically, he expressed disappointment that they disregarded his proposal to satirize spy movies instead of police features, as cop films had become less popular in cinemas. The lack of interest shown towards these ideas may have contributed to the delay, as fresh news about “Naked Gun” didn’t resurface until four years after Zucker’s 2017 interview. It was during this period that producer Seth MacFarlane became involved, eventually leading to the release of the Akiva Schaffer version of “Naked Gun” in theaters.
Reviving this goofy comedy series after over a decade of development involved numerous ups and downs, showcasing just how challenging it can be to make any movie – even ones filled with outrageous humor and off-color jokes. This new installment of The Naked Gun was no exception; it went through several lead actors and scriptwriters before settling on its current creative team. Now, we’ll have to wait and see if audiences will appreciate the final product, which required a great deal of effort.
The Naked Gun hits theaters on August 1.
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2025-07-21 00:23