Director Kevin Smith is a man juggling many projects all at once. But it looks like he has finally decided on his next feature film. Instead ofMall Rats 2, which by all accounts appears to have been turned into a 10 hour TV show, or the True North trilogy ending thrillerMoose Jaws, about a killer moose, he’s gong back to the wellspring of his youth. And will literally attempt to rework that magic with an ode toClerkshe likes to callJay & Silent Bob Reboot. His plan is to shoot the movie soon.
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Backwas the culmination of many films featuring the two lead characters, a journey that started in 1994’sClerkswhich carried over into such films asMallrats,Chasing AmyandDogma. It came out in 2001. And was a hit with audiences. Perhaps it’s a fan favorite, but nothing was really ever the same after that movie. Now, the master of ramble is back with a reboot of the movie. And he will officially begin filming before the end of the year. He offers these thoughts on the officialKevin Smith Twitter
“16 years ago, #JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack was released in theaters. And this Fall, we shoot a follow-up flick called #JayAndSilentBobReboot!”
No release date forJay and Silent Bob Reboothas been announced yet, but the movie shooting so soon, we’ll most likely see it in theaters by the end of 2018. No cast has been announced, but Kevin Smith managed to convince the entire cast ofMallratsto come back for a sequel before that got turned into a TV show, so its likely we’ll see his usual repertory cast of characters and actors, including Ben Affleck, Jason Lee and Rosario Dawson. The biggest coup would be if he could convince Bruce Willis to be in the movie. The pair notoriously made the comedyCop Outtogether. And ever since, Smith has slammed Willis in many of his Q&A comedy concerts. So who wouldn’t want to see those two back together on the big screen for the ultimate showdown? I know I’d buy a ticket.
The one constant and sure fire promise is thatKevin Smith will be back to reprise Silent Bob, and his trusting sidekick Jay will once again be played byJason Mewes. The movie will go at it meta-style, and is an actual sequel toStrikes Back, with the pair trying to stop a Hollywood reboot of theBluntman Vs Chronicmovie that was seen in the original road trip, with the pair upset that the property is getting a dark, gritty redo.
With the story sending Jersey rats Jay and Bob back to Hollywood, we can expect any number of celebrity cameos. And it’s possible that Ben Affleck will be on hand to poke fun at his controversial Batman persona. Kevin Smith has recently made a career out of directing episodes ofThe CW’s Arrowverse, and we could stars such asSupergirl’s Melissa Benoist andThe Flash’s Grant Gustin pop in for a few minutes. Kevin Smith gave this as a synopsis.
“A tongue-in-cheek, silly-ass satire that pokes fun at the movie business’s recent re-do obsession.”
AfterMallratsshifted into the TV landscape, Smith promised that he was makingClerks 3. It isn’t known if he still plans on making that movie. But his so called View Askewniverse is definitely alive and well, and will be resurrected this fall inReboot. It should be a fun wink and nod to our current cinematic state. And whether or not you like what Smith has to offer, it sounds like it could be a very fun ride. We wish Kevin much success with this endeavor. Perhaps it will open some eyes in Hollywood, and pave the way towards more original material from the youth of today who will be inspired to move us into the future.
