Liam Neeson and Leslie Nielsen in 1988’s The Naked Gun.Photo:Michael Loccisano/Getty, Elliott Marks/Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock
Michael Loccisano/Getty, Elliott Marks/Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock
Liam Neesonis taking a turn toward comedy.
On Wednesday,multipleoutletsreportedthat Neeson, 71, is set to star in a reboot ofTheNaked Gunseries for Paramount that will release in theaters July 18, 2025.
Akiva Schaffer, the formerSaturday Night Livewriter known for his collaborations with The Lonely Island and Andy Samberg, is set to direct and executive producer the reboot of the crime-comedy series that originated with the Leslie Nielsen-starring television seriesPolice Squad!
The threeNaked Gunmovies starred the late Nielsen, who died in 2010 at 84, as police officer Frank Drebin in a spoof of American crime movies. The original 1982 television series gave way to three movies in theNaked Gunfranchise that released in 1988, 1991 and 1994.
Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, two screenwriters who worked with Schaffer, 46, on 2022’sChip ‘n Dale; Rescue Rangers, are writing the script for theNaked Gunreboot;Family GuycreatorSeth MacFarlaneis attached as an executive producer.
The firstNaked Gunmovie celebrated its 35th anniversary in December. At the time,THRspoke with David Zucker and Pat Proft, who directed and cowrote the original series, aboutwhether or not they were involved with the ongoing reboot effortat Paramount.
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“Pat, Mike and I wrote a script forNaked Gun 4, and we heard Jon Gonda at Paramount had read the script and laughed all the way through it,” Zucker said at the time. “But somewhere along the line, they decided not to go with Pat and Mike and me. So that’s when they got Seth MacFarlane, and he has Akiva Schaffer directing Liam Neeson. I was never able to meet with Seth.”
Proft expressed that the new movie “may come out and may be great,” but he expressed dismay that he was not involved in writing the film.
Liam Neeson on March 16, 2023.Karwai Tang/WireImage
Karwai Tang/WireImage
Neeson’s turn in the nextNaked Gunfilm comes after he appeared in three movies last year, including the action movieRetribution, Ethan Hawke’sWildcatandIn the Land of Saints and Sinners.The actor has several more projects in the works, per hisIMDb page.
The nextNaked Gunmovie is set for release July 18, 2025.
source: people.com
