How The Bare Gun Reboot Director Satisfied Seth MacFarlane The Spoof Would Work Once more

Filmmakers like Mel Brooks and the trio of David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker (often known as ZAZ) as soon as made spoofs the cream of the comedy crop with hits like “Younger Frankenstein,” “Blazing Saddles,” “Airplane!” and “The Bare Gun.” Sadly, the recognition of “Scary Film,” a very nice horror parody from 2000 that adopted in related footsteps and kicked off a franchise of its personal, resulted in a swath of far worse copycats from two of the movie’s co-writers, Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer. “Date Film,” “Epic Film,” “Catastrophe Film,” “Vampires Suck,” and extra all tried to cash-in on spoofing fashionable blockbusters of the time, however the comedy left lots to be desired, and the poor reception primarily killed the greatness and the enchantment of spoof comedy — not less than for a short while.

Fortunately, there have nonetheless been brilliant spots within the years since, such because the music biopic-skewering “Stroll Exhausting: The Dewey Cox Story,” which has utterly eviscerated the tropes of biographical motion pictures that got here within the wake of “Stroll the Line” and “Ray.” As well as, David Wain’s cult favourite “They Got here Collectively” delivered an ideal parody of romantic comedies like “You have Bought Mail.” Each proved that with the fitting expertise in entrance of and behind the digital camera, the spoof can nonetheless deliver huge laughs.

That brings us to 2025’s “The Bare Gun,” a reboot of the aforementioned spoof franchise that starred Leslie Nielsen as Detective Sergeant Frank Drebin. Tailored from the comedy sequence “Police Squad!,” the unique movie sequence adopted Drebin throughout three motion pictures as he obtained caught up in felony intrigue and foolish conditions, most of which he hilariously stumbled by with many mishaps. “The Bare Gun” and the TV sequence that preceded it used traditional reveals like “M Squad” and “Dragnet” and movies like the “Soiled Harry” motion pictures because the supply of their inspiration, however how would “The Bare Gun” work for at the moment’s audiences who could be far much less accustomed to these more and more aged titles?

Fortunately, “Sizzling Rod” and “Popstar: By no means Cease By no means Stopping” director Akiva Shaffer (one-third of the “SNL” comedy trio often called The Lonely Island) got here up with an method that satisfied producer Seth MacFarlane (who additionally helmed and starred in an underrated spoof of kinds with “A Million Methods to Die within the West”) that this traditional franchise may stay once more with a recent comedic method that also stays true to its roots.

Talking with Leisure Weekly, Shaffer mentioned, “Now we have a number of new, contemporary style references on the planet of detective procedural and motion movies and TV.” The journal famous a number of the inspirations that we’ll see mocked in “The Bare Gun,” starting from crime procedurals like “NCIS” and “Legislation & Order” franchises to blockbuster motion pictures like “Mission: Unimaginable,” “John Wick,” and James Bond. Even the movie’s star, Liam Neeson, will encourage a number of the gags by means of the “Taken” franchise. Shaffer added:

“There’s simply countless issues. So once I considered it as Liam doing that — not making an attempt to do what they did, however taking the spirit and making an attempt to honor the fashion of these motion pictures comedically with out stealing outright as a lot as potential — that is what opened it up.” And I began to see what the film might be.”

It seems like Shaffer got here aboard “The Bare Gun” on the proper time too, as a result of MacFarlane was having bother discovering the fitting method.

Seth MacFarlane joined “The Bare Gun” reboot in 2021, and he instantly knew Liam Neeson was the person he needed for the job, particularly after working with him on “A Million Methods to Die within the West” and a hilarious cameo in “Ted 2.” Nonetheless, they hadn’t but found out what one of the best method could be. MacFarlane recalled the event course of to EW:

“We had really damaged a narrative, however it actually was feeling — even to us — like a canopy band model of the unique film, and we could not actually justify in our personal minds why this wanted to be made. Akiva and his staff got here up with a totally completely different take, and it simply felt rather a lot more energizing and much more worthy of capturing … He cracked the nut in a manner we could not.”

Shaffer wrote the script with Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, who all labored collectively on the superb “Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers” film for Disney+, one other drop within the bucket for the previous “SNL” sensation’s comedic achievements. 

Nonetheless, though “The Bare Gun” reboot sees the supply of is parody evolving with the occasions — for instance, the opening sequence teased within the trailer with Drebin in disguise as a schoolgirl takes a cue from “The Darkish Knight” — Shaffer “actually studied” the unique film to determine what made it tick. That is why it is also staying true to the roots of traditional, noir detective motion pictures, corresponding to “Double Indemnity” and “The Huge Sleep.”

Whereas Shaffer has struggled to seek out field workplace success with the flicks he is directed, they at all times discover a greater viewers on residence media. However in relation to “The Bare Gun,” we’re hoping the shortage of huge comedies like this, mixed with a love for the unique franchise, will get quite a lot of audiences into theaters to snigger collectively. 

There’s nothing like seeing a hilarious film with an keen viewers, and we hope individuals present up when “The Bare Gun” hits theaters on August 1, 2025.