There has been word on a reboot of The Naked Gun for years now. But it looks like Paramount might finally turn this one into reality as Liam Neeson is in negotiations to star and Chip 'N Dale: Rescue Rangers director Akiva Schaffer on board to call the shots.
The 1988 original, of course, saw David Zucker, brother Jerry, Jim Abrahams and co-writer Pat Proft turn their short-lived comedy series Police Squad into a movie. It was an instant comedy hit, Leslie Nielsen's iconic central performance cementing his transformation from dramatic actor to comedy legend (via, of course, the likes of the Airplane! movies) as Detective Frank Drebin.
Two sequels followed to diminishing returns (though there are still good gags to be enjoyed in both), but we started to hear rumours of a remake in development. That went through a few versions – Ed Helms was attached to star for while — and more recently, Seth MacFarlane has been involved, aiming to put old pal Neeson into a new movie. He had Family Guy veterans Mark Hentemann and Alec Sulkin work up a script.
Which brings us up to today, and Schaffer boarding to direct. Given how well he did with Rescue Rangers (not to mention his history with the hugely underrated and criminally under-seen Lonely Island movies), we're quietly excited for what this could be. News that Rescue Rangers writers Dan Gregor and Doug Mand have landed a deal to re-write the script just adds to that.
Neeson might not be best known for his comedy chops, but he's certainly shown them off in the past. There's this moment from Extras, his role in The Lego Movie and some of MacFarlane's work. Not to mention a more recent cameo in a certain brilliant series ("there is no tape").
And according to Deadline, Neeson wouldn't be looking to play Drebin (let's be honest, who could?), but instead his son. Let's see how this one turns out…
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