We just got the latest look at the live-action Moana movie, and while I know a lot of Disney fans are excited about it, I’m starting to get bored of knowing what to expect from Walt Disney Studios’ slate. However, we also just got some news about another one of the upcoming Disney movies in development, and I'm very on board with the different approach the House of Mouse seems to be taking with a live-action reimagining.

Disney Just Hired Some Hilarious Writers For A Cinderella Spinoff

Walt Disney Studios is currently working on a Cinderella spinoff called Stepsisters, and they just hired one-third of the Lonely Island guys, Akiva Schaffer, to co-write the script and direct it, per Deadline. The report says that a script has been turned in by Michael Montemayor, but now Schaffer, along with his collaborators Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, will go in and “rework” it. Given those guys ability to make everything they touch is very funny, I’m going to guess they’re going to redress it into more of a comedy.

These are the names who just worked together on The Naked Gun, which was both an absolute blast to watch with an audience last summer and earned an impressive 4 out of 5 stars in our review. While I’m sort of surprised their next endeavor is a family-friendly Disney feature, I’m really excited about how this could refresh the studio's live-action slate.

As Someone Who’s Getting Stale On Live-Action Remakes, I’m Stoked

For a long time now, Walt Disney Studios has taken a pretty straightforward approach to its live-action films, which I find to be rather unimaginative and safe. I think audiences are ready for the company to try some more off-kilter ideas with their brand, and something like Akiva Schaffer’s take on Cinderella feels like a step in the right direction (pun intended).

I mean, we really haven’t seen an original live-action spinoff of this kind since maybe 2014’s Maleficent, and that was huge. Though I should note that we’re really not sure yet if this is the kind of movie that will be made for the big screen or for people with a Disney+ subscription. I would hope it’ll be an effort for cinemas, especially after Walt Disney Studios had a comedy win with the release of Freakier Friday.

I think the success of this will really come down to what talent they hire to play Anastasia and Drizella. But if they size things right, it could be a fun concept to have a movie be all about the evil stepsisters rather than Cinderella.

Outside of Stepsisters, we know the live-action Moana is on the 2026 movie schedule for July 10, Lilo & Stitch 2 is set for May 26, 2028, and a live-action Tangled is in the works. I’m crossing my fingers that Stepsisters does happen, because I want to laugh out loud over a live-action Disney movie now!

If you had told me The Naked Gun movie would be one of those memorable 2025 movie releases for me a few months ago, I have to say, I would be rather surprised. But, here we are. I had so much fun going to see the Liam Neeson comedy during opening weekend with a packed crowd, and the experience is actually making me rethink my rather low view of spoof movies. Let’s get into it.

I Had A Blast At Going To See The Naked Gun In Theaters

After a memorable pre-release campaign and seeing the rave response from critics (including through our The Naked Gun review), I decided to check out the new release in its first weekend. And for context, yes, I’ve seen spoof movies like the original The Naked Gun, Airplane! and so forth growing up, but they never really landed any strong impression on me prior.

This movie is so popular, I actually had to trade my tickets for another showing the day I saw it because someone took my seats and it was too packed to go anywhere else but the front row. Anyways, once we were seated, I found myself really enjoying the experience of seeing it on the big screen. Not because there’s some crazy big set pieces to enjoy, but because it was so dang fun to see how audiences would react to the myriad of jokes throughout the movie. Some would get an overwhelming amount of laughter, but what really got me was when a single person would laugh about one joke that went over the rest of our heads, or just louder than everyone else.

It was a really communal experience at the movie theater that took me by surprise because I realized it was a rare one for me. Usually when I go and watch big movies in theaters, it’s more about the thrills, but there’s so many wild jokes that a big part of the fun was through the specific energy from those sitting around me. And, I think it’d be good for repeated viewings to see what each crowd is like.

I’ve Never Gone Out Of My Way To See A Spoof Movie, But The Experience Has Changed Things For Me

If I had seen The Naked Gun for the first time at home, I’m sure I would have still had a good time with it, but I would be missing that element of the experience that really added a little something else. With that in mind, it made me realize that the spoof movies I’ve watched have generally been viewed at home, and I didn’t understand a major element of value they have when they are initially released. And hey, I didn’t grow up in a generation where comedies were widely watched in theaters like they were in the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s.

There’s a shock factor of spoof movies that haven’t appealed to me, but guys, I get it now! It’s really entertaining to see what jokes one person gets and really puts off another. (For example, my partner was dying laughing at the sparkling water joke in The Naked Gun, whereas I was a goner for the whole chili dog scene). Now, I’m wondering if I actually want to give them another try, such as going back to the original The Naked Gun or actually giving the Scary Movie franchise another try when the movie hits theaters next year.

Look, I get some people reading this will be like ‘Duh!”, but the fact that I went to see a spoof movie on opening weekend after having a disinterest in them and my whole realization shows the power of The Naked Gun’s campaign. I hope its success and conversations like this could help bring back theatrical comedies into the fold after they’ve been greatly sidelined to streaming in recent years, because as a movie fan, I want more experiences like this in theaters.

SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains minor spoilers for the newly released The Naked Gun. If you have not yet seen the film, proceed at your own risk!

In the third act climax of The Naked Gun, the whole world has gone primal due to the activation of the nefarious P.L.O.T. Device. A chase between a cadre of motorcycles and an owl ends in front of a fountain, and a final showdown is set up between villain and hero: Danny Huston's Richard Cane and... Dave Bautista. For a brief scene, Liam Neeson is recast with the Dune star as Frank Drebin Jr., the latter reading a few dramatic lines before the former tags back in, and it's a wonderfully out of left field gag that got big reactions from the audience both times I've seen the movie.

As for how the cameo came together, CinemaBlend's Jeff McCobb got the answer to that particular inquiry when he recently interviewed director Akiva Schaffer and producer Erica Huggins during the virtual press day for The Naked Gun. As it turns out, it wasn't a case of hunting for the right fit and trying to find someone who would say yes; instead, having Dave Bautista appear was one of the first names considered, and he was the first person who said yes. Said Schaffer,

Following up, Erica Huggins explained that they didn't exactly have a lot of back-up ideas, and they quickly recognized him as a great fit for the part:

It is indeed quite awesome. In addition to having the great joke where Dave Bautista temporarily subs in as Frank Drebin, he is subsequently attacked by people influenced by the P.L.O.T. Device, and he comically screams out in pain, "I'm not even supposed to be in this movie!" Of course, he eventually survives and even makes peace with his attackers with Frank Drebin and Pamela Anderson's Beth Davenport flick the switch that makes everyone go from being "Calmed Up" to "Calmed Down."

It's another feather in the acting cap for Bautista, who has shown that he has surprising range as a performer. The Naked Gun is the latest title on the comedy side of his resume (other entries including his time as Drax in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies as well as his two-hander Stuber with Kumail Nanjiani), but he has also become a close collaborator with filmmaker Denis Villeneuve via the Dune movies and Blade Runner 2049. John Cena recently called Bautista the "GOAT of wrestlers-turned-actors," and the argument for his case is only getting stronger.

I can personally confirm that The Naked Gun is a delightful cinematic experience to have more than once in theaters, as it's not only amazing to bathe in the laughter of a full auditorium, but there are also so many jokes in the film that you are guaranteed to discover something you missed during your first watch. The comedy is now playing in cinemas everywhere, having landed in third place at the box office during its successful opening weekend.

I believe someone once said that legacyquels and comedies share a common thread: they’re more difficult to manage than a child in a sugar rush. The moment the Seth MacFarlane-produced version of The Naked Gun was announced, that sort of “wisdom” was probably ringing in people’s ears. To try and recapture the manic energy of Leslie Nielsen and the Police Squad! legacy is something many – even the architects that built the franchise – have tried and failed at over the years.

Sometimes conventional wisdom needs to be heeded, and sometimes it needs to step aside and let Liam Neeson eat five chili dogs in the name of fighting crime, no matter the consequences. Well, this is definitely a time where that sort of “wisdom” can stuff it, as The Naked Gun is a pure and beautiful return to form – just over 30 years since the franchise last wore its badge at a theater near you.

You can’t really “spoil” a Naked Gun movie because the plot is pretty much the same thing for most of the films. Cop (Liam Neeson) meets Girl (Pamela Anderson), Cop meets Villain (Danny Huston), Villain has a plan that’s fishy enough for Cop to investigate, but covert enough to make the suspicious Cop look like a loose cannon.

Writers Dan Gregor & Doug Mand, along with co-writer/director Akiva Schaffer, don’t reinvent the wheel with their spin on the Zuckers-Abrahams-Zucker school of schtick. However, this isn’t your father’s Naked Gun (put that back where you found it!) While the silliness and slapstick are still present, this series has evolved with the times – which helps it stick the landing in delivering something familiar enough to watch with your parents but new enough to enjoy with your friends.

The “new version” of The Naked Gun knows when to update and when to stick to the classics.

Rebooting The Naked Gun would have been a fool’s errand, though admittedly an equally effective opportunity to sending up modern Hollywood. A legacyquel means that the story doesn’t need to compete or one-up its classic predecessors, but rather it just needs to update the humor for today’s sensibilities. That means the raunchy is toned down (a bit), and the off-color humor is refocused into other areas you can safely laugh along with at an NPR-sponsored screening.

More important than that is the fact that Liam Neeson’s turn at bat doesn’t forget to pack in jokes where other parodies may fear to tread: in the sight gags. The legacy trilogy and its six-episode source material (the short-lived TV series Police Squad!), were always chock full of offbeat background action, visual inconsistencies, and end credits packed with crazy jokes. In a slim and trim 85 minute running time, “the new version” packs as much humor as it can into every moment it can find, and it’s never forced.

Even something as typically “simple” as the soundtrack is maximized for chuckles thanks to veteran action composer Lorne Balfe combining touches from his time on films like Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning with the classic noir touches The Naked Gun requires.

There’s even a brand new version of Ira Newborn’s classic Police Squad! theme that enlists musician Gordon Goodwin to help bring its larger than life melody back to play. Considering he did the same for 2008’s Get Smart adaptation, you couldn’t have found better hands to put that baton in.

The Naked Gun stacks the deck with a cast ready for anything, and Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson’s comedic chemistry leads the way.

Comedy, especially that of the parody subgenre, needs an ensemble that believes in the cause from frame one and never breaks. With that criteria in mind, you could say that the cast of The Naked Gun are the most hardened jokesters this side of the camera – which begins with the electric pair that is Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson.

Neeson has been warming up for this gig over time with roles in The LEGO Movie and cameos in Ted 2; as well as studying Leslie Nielsen’s past works rather thoroughly. He doesn’t try to totally channel the stoicism that his predecessor possessed, allowing for a little more silliness to peek through in his Frank Drebin, Jr. It’s the sort of distance that’s needed when trying to execute a vision such as The Naked Gun.

Meanwhile, Pamela Anderson might be the actor that’s considered the “surprising standout” of the cast. I’d partially agree, as anyone who’s followed her career over the years will see that the only thing different with The Naked Gun is that the folks in charge gave her the largest comedy canvas she’s ever painted on here. Consider the woman Bob Ross, as Anderson is up for all of the shenanigans expected of her.

Rounding out this cast of crushers are veteran character actors like Danny Huston and Kevin Durand (who show off villainy that walks that fine line between silly and sinister), Paul Walter Hauser (continuing a run of scene stealing he started this summer with The Fantastic Four: First Steps), and CCH Pounder. The latter's casting is another case of how much this picture trusts its audience, as you’re expected to know her role from The Shield, but she’s not expected to offer a pale imitation of that dramatic piece.

A lean and mean reminder of why parody comedy is so beloved, The Naked Gun aims for big laughs and doesn’t miss.

What most surprised me about The Naked Gun is the fact that all involved were able to resurrect the ZAZ school of rapid fire comedy. The pacing in the dialogue is zippy, pithy, and able to convince you that Liam Neeson and Danny Huston’s riff on the Black Eyed Peas is really talking about high art. On top of the easter eggs, sight gags, and score, the frequency/hit rate on this saga hasn’t lost pace for a second.

The Naked Gun is put together with a love for the original property, a cutting sense of humor about modern times, and an impish smile permanently etched on its face. Comedy is back in theaters, and like a stand up comedian at a bridal shower, it’s as beautiful as it is hilarious.

If there was ever a movie that could convince you a beloved recording star would agree to a residency in an apocalyptic bunker in a cameo that pays off in the end credits stinger, it’s this one. Isn’t that what America, and the world, need right about now? (Outside of world peace, economic stability, and a Nintendo console with a controller doesn't drift right out of the box.)

The brilliant comedy of The Naked Gun franchise dates back over four decades, as the original flick was based on the old TV show Police Squad! That may be common knowledge to anyone who grew up watching Leslie Nielsen’s Frank Drebin, but now younger audiences are going to get a chance to familiarize themselves with the crime spoofs. The Naked Gun reboot hits the 2025 movie calendar in a couple of weeks, and people are hitting social media with their first reactions.

Liam Neeson leads the legacy sequel’s cast as Frank Drebin Jr., and the new Naked Gun trailer looks absolutely ridiculous — which is just what fans like myself are hoping for. So what are moviegoers saying after catching early screenings of the movie? JimmyO of JoBlo posts that it’s “consistently funny” from start to finish:

That’s not the only person talking about Pamela Anderson. The Baywatch alum almost appeared in Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult in 1994, but now 30 years later she’s getting a crack at the spoof series in a co-starring role. Critic Erik Davis says the actress was “perfectly cast,” as he writes:

Jeffrey Vega of IGN very strongly rejects that sentiment, saying that this fourth installment of The Naked Gun franchise proves otherwise. Vega writes:

Katcy Stephan of Variety is also weighing in to say that the new Naked Gun feels a lot like the Leslie Nielsen movies from decades past, posting:

“Deliciously stupid” may not sound like a compliment, but when it comes to The Naked Gun, that is 100% what it should be. Early praise seems to be coming in for both Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson, but the reboot features a lot of other big names: Paul Walter Hauser, Kevin Durand, Danny Huston, CCH Pounder, Busta Rhymes and Michael Bisping, to name a few. And I can’t wait to see what they bring to the police spoof.

We’ve still got a couple of weeks before this one hits theaters, but it seems like this one is a must-see on the big screen. The Naked Gun is set for release Friday, August 1.

Just about anyone who has ever been on the Saturday Night Live cast has been a part of the writing staff. Yet, not everyone who has written a classic SNL sketch has been a part of the cast, but many of them would still go on to become comedy legends in their own right. Take a look at some of the most well-known names to ever work from behind the scenes at Studio 8H.

John Mulaney

During his SNL tenure from 2009 to 2012, John Mulaney created Stefon with Bill Hader and infrequently appeared on "Weekend Update" for a segment called "I Love It." The Chicago native went on to become one of the most acclaimed comedians of his time and returned to host enough times to join SNL's Five-Timers Club.

Paula Pell

Paula Pell boasts one of the longest runs as an SNL writer, sticking around from 1995 to 2013 and winning an Emmy in the process. The Girls5eva and Mapleworth Murders star would later share the screen with many SNL veterans in Netflix's Wine Country and voiced Mom's Anger in the Inside Out movies, to name a few notable examples of her acting career.

Bob Odenkirk

After writing at SNL from 1987 to 1991, during which he created Chris Farley's iconic Matt Foley character (as he revealed on Hot Ones), Bob Odenkirk went on to create and star in his own acclaimed sketch comedy series with David Cross called Mr. Show with Bob and David. The comedian's career would take an unexpected and exciting turn when he joined the Breaking Bad cast as Saul Goodman, which spawned the spin-off Better Call Saul and led to Odenkirk becoming an action star with Nobody.

Stephen Colbert

While he did not make the cut to join the cast, in 1996, Stephen Colbert landed a brief stint in the writers' room at Studio 8H, where he also starred in several pre-recorded SNL sketches as the voice of Ace from The Ambiguously Gay Duo. He also served as a writer and performer for the short-lived The Dana Carvey Show before becoming better known as a Daily Show correspondent, hosting his own political satire program, The Colbert Report, and succeeding David Letterman as host of CBS' The Late Show.

Hannibal Buress

Only one of Hannibal Buress' sketches made it to air during his brief stint as an SNL writer in the late 2010s. He would certainly make up for the lack of exposure at Studio 8H, however, when he became a top name in stand-up, served as the sidekick on Adult Swim's The Eric Andre Show, and joined the MCU as Peter Parker's gym teacher.

Larry David

As Larry David revealed to Vanity Fair, one of the best Seinfeld episodes was inspired by a time he angrily quit his brief tenure as an SNL writer in the mid-1980s and attempted to return to Studio 8H the following Monday like it never happened. The Curb Your Enthusiasm star would later return to the show as its resident Bernie Sanders and for multiple hilarious hosting gigs.

Adam McKay

If Adam McKay, who served as head writer for three of his six years at Studio 8H in the late '90s and early 2000s, had become a cast member, he would be among the few SNL stars to win an Academy Award. While also known for co-writing and directing some of Will Ferrell's best movies, his peak achievement is his Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for 2015's The Big Short, which he followed with the acclaimed satirical Dick Cheney biopic, Vice.

Steve Higgins

Steve Higgins started writing at SNL in 1995 and would maintain the position for decades, during which he would occasionally make appearances, such as in the monologue for Justin Timberlake's hosting debut. The father of Please Don't Destroy's John Higgins, even stayed on as a producer and writer after signing on as Jimmy Fallon's talk show sidekick on Late Night and The Tonight Show.

J.B. Smoove

Audiences may recognize the boisterous and irresistibly animated comic J.B. Smoove best as Leon on Curb Your Enthusiasm or from two of the MCU's Spider-Man movies as Peter Parker's teacher, Mr. Dell. Earlier on, he served as a writer on SNL for three years, during which he would sometimes appear on camera, such as when he impersonated Jimmy "JJ" Walker in a Good Times parody.

Conan O'Brien

Conan O'Brien would have never become one of the all-time most beloved late-night TV hosts if not for his three-year stint as an SNL writer, as it was producer Lorne Michaels who recommended he take over Late Night for David Letterman. The 2025 Mark Twain Prize recipient is also known as a writer for The Simpsons and, following his retirement from late-night TV in 2021, expanded his purview by hosting a hit podcast, Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend, and a travel docuseries, Conan O'Brien Must Go.

Harper Steele

Harper Steele wrote for SNL from 1995 to 2008 and was promoted to head writer for her final four seasons. She experienced an uptick in notoriety later in life when she came out as transgender, which was detailed in Netflix's award-winning documentary, Will & Harper, in which she travels cross-country with longtime friend Will Ferrell.

Tim Herlihy

Tim Herlihy, the father of Please Don't Destroy's Martin Herlihy, very rarely appeared on SNL during his five years as a writer, but does have a well-known character named after him: The Herlihy Boy, played by Adam Sandler. He and Sandler would also collaborate on movies like The Wedding Singer and The Waterboy, to name a few, in which he also appears in funny cameos.

Greg Daniels

Greg Daniels became Conan O'Brien's writing partner when they met at Harvard, years before being hired at SNL in 1988. He later achieved fame and acclaim as a creator and developer of various hit comedy series, most notably the American adaptation of The Office.

Jorma Taccone

Jorma Taccone has appeared in many of the best SNL Digital Shorts, which he and his partners from The Lonely Island, Andy Samberg and Akiva Schaffer, were in charge of creating during his writers' room tenure from 2005-2010. The comedian, musician, and filmmaker is also the mastermind behind the recurring sketch, "MacGruber," and directed the 2010 movie based on the SNL character as well.

Herb Sargent

Herb Sargent, who passed away in 2005, was hired as an SNL writer at the very beginning when the show was still called NBC's Saturday Night, and is even credited as the creator of "Weekend Update." Of course, his writing career predates the sketch comedy series, having also written for The Tonight Show in the 1950s, most notably. Sargent was also the Writers Guild of America, East, which named an award honoring comedic excellence after him.

Jack Handey

Despite never showing his face on the show, Jack Handey is a well-known name in SNL's history thanks to his recurring one-liner bits known as "Deep Thoughts" and "Fuzzy Memories." His decades-long tenure at Studio 8H began when frequent collaborator Steve Martin introduced him to Lorne Michaels.

Michael Schur

Michael Schur might be recognized best as Dwight Schrute's cousin, Mose, from The Office, which he wrote for and produced before. He would also team with Office developer Greg Daniels to create Parks and Recreation; he co-created Brooklyn Nine-Nine with Dan Goor, and he created The Good Place himself. However, his career began when he joined SNL's writing staff from 1998 to 2004.

Carol Leifer

Carol Leifer only wrote for one season of SNL: its eleventh, which is widely considered its weakest year. Nonetheless, she is recognized as a comedy legend for her stellar stand-up career and contribution to acclaimed TV sitcoms like Seinfeld, additional sketch comedy shows like MADtv, and awards ceremonies like the Oscars.

Dave Attell

Dave Atell is a relatively well-known name in the comedy world, having hosted a popular show on Comedy Central called Insomniac and appeared in hit movies like Pootie Tang, Funny People, and Trainwreck. One of the stand-up comedian's earliest gigs in show business was writing for SNL during the 1993-1994 season.

Akiva Schaffer

After he and his partners in The Lonely Island made a name for themselves by making short films for Channel 101, Akiva Schaffer would specialize in making shorts for SNL with them. In addition to making funny appearances in movies like Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, he has since become successful on his own as the director of films like 2022's Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers and the 2025 reboot of The Naked Gun.

Max Brooks

In addition to being the son of Mel Brooks (creator of many hilarious parody movies), Max Brooks is famous for writing one of the most acclaimed works of zombie fiction, The Zombie Survival Guide, and World War Z. Before then, he wrote for SNL from 2001 to 2003.

Chris Kelly

Chris Kelly found great success from co-creating the Comedy Central original series, The Other Two, with Sarah Schneider. Prior to that, both of them served as writers at SNL, and both became the head of the staff during their last season between 2016 and 2017.

Emily Spivey

Former MADtv writer Emily Spivey's Emmy-winning tenure in the Studio 8H writer's room lasted from 2001 to 2010. She would reunite with other female SNL alumnae from that era in the Netflix movie, Wine Country, and also wrote for shows like The Last Man on Earth and How I Met Your Father.

Tom Gammill

Tom Gammill and his longtime writing partner got their start at SNL in the late 1970s. They would go on to join the staff for Late Night with David Letterman, Seinfeld, and The Simpsons, most notably.

Matt Graham

Talented stand-up comedian Matt Graham was a writer for the likes of Saturday Night Live and Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and even for game shows like Chain Reaction. Yet, his bigger claim to fame may be his title as the World Scrabble Championship runner-up when he represented the United States in an international competition in 1997, according to The New York Times.

Bruce McCulloch

Multi-talented Canadian comedian Bruce McCulloch was part of the SNL writing staff from 1985 to 1986. Just a few years later, he became a part of the comedy troupe, The Kids in the Hall, who started their own popular, self-titled sketch comedy series that ran from 1989 to 1995.

J. J. Philbin

You can probably tell from her last name that J.J. Philbin has a famous father named Regis. On top of that, she has a famous husband, Michael Schur, whom she met while she was writing for SNL in the late 1990s. However, she would later make a name for herself by writing for shows like Dead Like Me and The O.C., co-creating ABC's Single Parents, and executive producing Only Murders in the Building.

Sam Jay

Sam Jay is the star of some great stand-up comedy specials on Netflix (as well as part of the platform's Roast of Tom Brady), a talk/variety show on HBO called Pause with Sam Jay, and a Peacock original comedy series called Bust Down. Prior to those achievements, she became the first Black, lesbian SNL writer in 2017.

Charlie Grandy

Charlie Grandy is best known for his many collaborations with Mindy Kaling, including The Office, The Mindy Project, and Velma. One of his earliest gigs, however, was writing for SNL from 2001 to 2008, during which he earned one of his two Primetime Emmy Awards.

Streeter Seidell

Comedian Streeter Seidell first made a name for himself on the popular website CollegeHumor.com, on which he released his web series, Prank Wars, which was picked up by MTV as Pranked. In 2014, he found himself on the SNL staff, for which he co-created the character of David S. Pumpkins, and was promoted to head writer status eight years later.

Simon Rich

Simon Rich is one of the youngest SNL hires in the show's history, having joined the writing staff right out of college from 2007 to 2011. He would leave Studio 8H to work for Pixar and later created the surreal romantic-comedy series, Man Seeking Woman (based on his short story collection, The Last Girlfriend on Earth), on FXX in 2015.

Andy Breckman

Andy Breckman is the writer and director of, arguably, Eddie Murphy's single greatest SNL sketch, "White Like Me." He also wrote for Late Night with David Letterman, but is best known as the creator of the Emmy-winning, long-running detective dramedy, Monk.

The potential for a Liam Neeson-starring revival of The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad is a dream that’s been waiting to become reality. In the past couple of years, updates have hit here and there referencing Paramount’s movement on bringing back Leslie Nielsen’s iconic comedy franchise. Well, it may not be long before we see that project join the list of upcoming movies in the near future.

Like a giant learning the mambo, the studio has taken some pretty huge steps. Per unnamed sources that have spoken to Deadline, the wheels are turning  yet again on a new Naked Gun movie. What separates this latest news from previous reporting is the fact that there’s now a director and screenwriting team in the mix. Fresh off of the Disney+ comedy Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers, director Akiva Schaffer has been tapped to helm the movie, with writers Dan Gregor & Doug Mand also joining in to write a new draft. 

Liam Neeson is in negotiations to play the lead, who allegedly may be the son of Frank Drebin, Leslie Nielsen’s character from the first three Naked Gun movies.

Looking back at the combined work that was done by the Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers creative team should be all anyone needs to sell them on why this is the right move. Basically, if you took away the Disney brand limitations and cranked up the crazy a little bit, you’d have The Naked Gun anyway. Anyone who enjoyed that film, or even its spiritual predecessor, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, would definitely dig the vibe of this storied franchise.

The project is a great opportunity for Liam Neeson to pursue comedy beyond his drama and action films. Previously, Seth MacFarlane was mentioned as working on developing the new Naked Gun with his own team of writers. While The Orville creator is still involved, his role looks to be only as a producer now. One can hope that hasn’t dimmed Neeson’s enthusiasm for a role for which he seems like a perfect fit.

Could The Naked Gun answer the question of whether or not Liam Neeson will retire from action movies? We’ll have to wait and see on that for the moment. But there is tremendous potential for the project with with Akiva Schaffer and his Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers writers along for the ride, and we're keeping hope alive for the return of the brand's special comedy magic.

As for the subject of upcoming Liam Neeson movies, his new film Marlowe is set to debut in theaters on December 2. Those of you looking to revisit the Naked Gun films starring Leslie Nielsen can do just that with access to Showtime, which can be purchased as an add-on through several existing services, like a Paramount+ subscription. Finally, if you’re looking for love in all the wrong places, we can’t help you there; but good luck!

Warning: SPOILERS for the cameos in Disney+’s Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers are in play. If you want to remain unspoiled, come back once you’ve seen the film. 

To screenwriters Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers is a backdoor sequel to Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Set in a modern day Los Angeles where toons and humans can interact freely, that vibe carried over excellently in this addition to the canon of Disney+ movies. Such a concept also comes another interesting wrinkle that even presented the people behind Roger Rabbit with some headaches of their own: securing the rights to the amazing number of characters used for cameos and Easter eggs.

An insane process helped secure the appearances vital to sell the world of Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers, and it was so big that it couldn’t only be told by one person. Thanks to my interviews during the film’s press days, director Akiva Schaffer, as well as Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, laid out the whole road map to how it all happened. 

To hear the whole story, you should watch the video included at the top. Also, consider this another warning about spoilers for Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers, if you haven’t seen the movie for yourself. If you want to know more, without giving anything away, you can check out my official review of Rescue Rangers. With that aside, let’s start the madness of how the Disney legal team embarked on one of its greatest journeys yet.

In two separate interviews, I spoke with the Rescue Rangers team about how the movie’s glorious mixture of easter eggs and appearances came to be. Everyone from the Mane Six from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic to Randy Marsh from South Park found their way into the picture. Needless to say, the trailer for Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers only scratches the surface of who shows up. 

Wondering how this came together and if there was any pushback, I asked all three participants across two separate interviews about what had to happen. As it turns out, while there was a lot of work heaped onto the Disney legal team, the company embraced Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Ranger’s kitchen sink of characters. As you’ll see below, Akiva Schaffer thanked the Disney legal team, while Doug Mand and Dan Gregor laid out just how much went into those negotiations. Here’s what these gentlemen told CinemaBlend: 

"Akiva Schaffer: [Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers] couldn’t have been made without them, and they had to really embrace the idea of this movie, and why it was fun to do … I don’t know how many hours they spend on most movies, but they had to spend many more hours on this movie to get all that stuff done.  

Doug Mand: And everything you see on screen is an individual negotiation. It’s not, there’s no blanket, like-

Dan Gregor: You can’t just go to Warner Bros. and say, ‘Hey, can we use all your characters?’ You had to, every single specific had to be really specifically figured out."

For the most part, cartoon fans may see cameos from other characters as an exercise in selling a specific universe. Thinking back to Warner Bros’ 2020 release of Scoob!, the film was a huge ode to the Hanna Barbera universe; so much so that people must have thought they were trying to win over HBO Max subscribers. Akiva Schaffer was aware of such a concern for Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers, and he addressed it directly while explaining how much of a process was required to make these appearances happen:

The work put in by Disney’s legal department certainly populated Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers with famous characters that you wouldn’t have ever thought to include in a Disney movie. Sly references like a billboard advertising the campaign for Senator Butthead (yes, of Beavis and Butthead fame) flash by in an instant, and even those quick hits needed some legal wrangling to wind up in the can. It sounds like a headache, but Dan Gregor made it sound more severe in recalling the paces this script had put the legal team through. 

Gregor’s jest aside, he and Doug Mand are nothing but grateful for the support they got on Rescue Rangers. That gratitude not only extends to the lawyers, but also director Akiva Schaffer and other behind-the-scenes teammates that Mand named specifically, as he continued to lay out just why this constellation of other people’s characters was so important:

"Dan Gregor: I’m sure we gave some lawyer a heart attack somewhere, and we appreciate your heart problems on our behalf. 

Doug Mand: I mean, I would say that Dan and I started writing this movie seven years ago. When we were writing it, one of the joys and the fun part about it is just being like, ‘Oh yeah, well this character could be in there.’ The whole time we were writing it, we’re like, ‘Well, they’re never going to make this movie. Like, there is just no chance that Disney is going to make this movie. So let’s write it the way that it is in our brains. Let’s make each other laugh, let’s go down memory lane.’ That was always kind of met with, surprisingly, a lot of support from Disney, Louis Provost over there, and Todd Lieberman and Alexander Young at Mandeville, they loved it too. And then Akiva came on, and he really loved that, and wanted to lean into it. Everyone was on board with trying to make this happen."

For a movie that seemed to have no chance of ever being made, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers has become a crowd-pleasing reality. Should the movie do well enough in its streaming run, Dan Gregor and Doug Mand would be pleased to return for another round of cameo-laden madness. This means the Disney legal team had better rest up just in case, as who knows what’ll be proposed for a Rescue Rangers 2. 

If that sort of pitch is even going to be heard in the halls of Disney, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers will need to be a hit. Currently, the movie is streaming on Disney+ alongside the entire series run of the original animated source. If you find yourself wondering where you’ve seen or heard Rescue Rangers’ cast before, we can help you identify some of the familiar folks involved in this adventure. 

Disney animation was at an interesting point at the dawn of the ‘90s. Movies like Who Framed Roger Rabbit kept pushing the studio’s Touchstone brand into a neutral zone for adults and older children to visit together. Meanwhile, The Disney Afternoon block of programming kept shows like Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers on the air, where syndication would entertain kids after they’d done their homework. The company that exists today isn’t quite the same as it was back in those days, with Touchstone Pictures being defunct for some time now. 

And yet, the Disney+ reboot of Rescue Rangers feels like a tip of the hat to those nostalgic days – while at the same time still keeping its feet firmly planted in the here and now. The first step towards that goal is taken with the story in director Akiva Schaeffer’s film, which sees Chip (John Mulaney) and Dale (Andy Samberg) reconciling after decades of separation. With the cancellation of Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers, the gang went their separate ways; but a new wave of crime brings these two gumshoes back together for a case that might just be too big for them to handle alone.

Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers is a reboot that mocks reboots, and gets it right in the process.

Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers is definitely a reboot, as the continuity of this new movie puts the characters of the series in a slightly exaggerated version of our own reality. The meta-humoristic approach has been mentioned as the path of choice since writers Dan Gregor and Doug Mand came in as the scribes of choice. With that in mind, the new Rescue Rangers does mock reboots, while also playing to the strengths of the formula, and it gets it right in the process.

This is where the hat tips to Who Framed Roger Rabbit come into play, even as Roger himself has a small cameo in the beginning of the film. Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers plays like a new version of that story, with the dangers of being a toon leading to a rash of high-profile abductions. The result is a process that, depending on how you look at it, feels worse than The Dip.

Taking a tonal page out of Edgar Wright’s playbook, we’re treated to a Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers that is both tongue-in-cheek, but also pretty serious. In the process of mocking mashup tentpoles with “vs.” in the title, the movie also finds a way to throw in some pretty crazy easter eggs, cameos, and the occasional joke that stops just short of crossing the PG-13 line. Somehow, it all works to the advantage of the story, and never seems out of place. 

The craziness that Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers gets away with is pleasantly surprising.

Moving this Disney Afternoon inspired adventure into the real world definitely removes the guardrails that a half-hour animated mystery would entail. As Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers locks onto its tone of humor quite early, a joke about the Chippendales male revue is the high water mark of what to expect in this PG-rated romp. The lines are firmly drawn as to where this movie will and will not go, but adults can fill in the gaps.

Craziness doesn’t only apply to the tone, as the sheer volume of cameos and surprises presented for the audience to digest keeps Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers at a mile-a-minute pace. Your pause button will find itself getting quite a workout, as background characters and billboards are double-take fodder while exploring the world of Chip and Dale’s reality. Chances are that if you thought you spotted someone you thought would never turn up in a Disney movie, you weren’t deceived. 

It’s an anarchy that’s pleasantly surprising, especially in light of what most people would expect from a movie of this sort. Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers still works beautifully on a basic comedy level that younger kids can get behind, even if they don’t realize who half of the characters on screen are. The action, and the humor, are enough to help anyone new to ‘90s animation enjoy the ride as it was intended, while allowing die-hard fans and older viewers a chance to enjoy some big laughs.

While the movie pushes the boundaries of meta-humor and PG-rated fun, Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers is family friendly, but fiercely funny.

To paraphrase Ferris Bueller, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers moves at the audience fast, and if people don’t stop to look around, they might just miss something. The story doesn’t suffer when that happens, which is both a blessing and a curse when it comes to pushing those meta-humor boundaries. Though it invokes the memory of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Chip ‘n Dale doesn’t get as twisted or dark with its mystery as that tale eventually did.

If you’re looking for that sort of complication, then your mileage may vary with Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers. The movie excels at having fun in a Looney Tunes-style fashion, cracking as many jokes as it can in-between the next clue and/or set piece. With a proper understanding of satire and reference based humor, Rescue Rangers avoids the traps most comedies fall into when trying to be fast and funny. 

With an assortment of humor that plays to anyone in the audience, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers is fiercely funny, while also family friendly. Hardcore fans of the show can let themselves question whether a romantic pairing in the Rescue Rangers cast would actually work or not. Younger/more novice viewers who don’t get the joke won’t have to worry too much about the matter, as the next hilarious moment is just around the corner. That just might be the best part about Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers, as it’s a film that’s reverent of its past, but not so much that it won’t allow itself to take some chances.

While the Oscars generally do a good job highlighting the best movies of any given year, there are always snubs: work or performances that audiences feel should be recognized, but aren't. This year's Academy Award ceremony almost saw a special tribute to these poor souls in the form of a special Lonely Island sketch - but while it didn't wind up making broadcast, you can now witness a workprint version online:

As noted in the video's text introduction, Lonely Island members Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer were approached by the Oscars about writing a special song for the 90th Annual ceremony. Unfortunately, the result of their creative sessions working on the project was ultimately deemed "financially and logistically impossible," and eventually scrapped. The good news is that they apparently maintained the rights to the material they produced, so they threw together the basic version that you can see above.

The gist of the music video is expressed in the song title, "Why Not Me," with the idea being that "snubbed" actors would sing about their woes not being nominated. It would have begun with Chris Hemsworth in character as Thor being upset about Thor: Ragnarok not getting any recognition, but then Gal Gadot would take over the second verse as Wonder Woman, her film also not mentioned in any category. After that it would have been a parade of stars, including Bill Skarsgard in makeup as Pennywise from IT, all five of the Chrises (Chris Pratt, Chris Pine, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, and Chris Rock) together for a special segment, Tiffany Haddish belting about wizzing on a zipline, and Jason Momoa as Aquaman mocking The Shape of Water.

All of that probably would have been tough to get done, but watching the video my most prominent thought was wondering just how game Michael Fassbender would be to throw The Snowman under the bus. The song is pretty brutal to the failed thriller, and there may be a part of him is proud of the work he did on the film... playing Detective Harry Hole.

This video is pretty great all by itself, but it does remain sad that the original concept will probably never be fully realized. That being said, this totally seems like a project that Jimmy Kimmel (host of the 2018 Oscars) or one of the other late night hosts would take on for their respective shows, working with The Lonely Island. It might actually prove to be "financially and logistically impossible," but we won't know until someone actually tries, right? At the very least a segment about attempting to make the video would probably wind up being fairly entertaining, so let's hope that someday it could actually come together.

With the arrival of the upcoming movie Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, we always knew that we would be in store for a whole lot of brand new musical comedy. After all, the film comes to us from Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone and Andy Samberg, best known as The Lonely Island. Although the pseudo-documentary feature isn’t specifically about the actual band, the project gave them the opportunity to write songs in their classic style, and weave them into a story about a fake pop star named Conner4Real (played by Samberg). And last year I got a special early taste of what to expect from those tracks while visiting the production during filming.

Last June, I joined a small group of other film journalists to visit the set of Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, and it was while talking with producer Rodney Rothman that we got the scoop on some of the ridiculous tracks that from Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone and Andy Samberg wrote for the new movie. All in all, there are about 20 to 25 new songs that will be in the feature, and Rothman gave us a taste of what to expect from some of the different pieces:

"I’m So Humble"

I don’t imagine that it will be much of a challenge for you all to figure out the joke in a song being recorded to be heard by millions of people and titled "I’m So Humble." That being said, we put it first because it’s one of the songs to which you can actually already listen.

"Equal Rights"

The good news? Conner4Real is a progressive individual who believes that everyone should have the right to marry, be they hetero or homosexual. The bad news? He’s an idiot. As a result, one of the tracks he records is called "Equal Rights," which apparently has a positive message, but is also just a bit misguided. Rodney Rothman revealed that the song actually has a guest star featured on it, but was hesitant to reveal the artist’s identity.

"Bin Laden"

You wouldn’t think that a song named after one of the most notorious terrorists in history would have any heart to it, but "Bin Laden" is actually a love song. As Rodney Rothman puts it, it just has an "unfortunate" metaphor driving it, which is the lyric "I wanna fuck you like the military fucked Bin Laden."

"Maximus"

With a name like "Maximus," you’d think that it were a song about fighting like a gladiator to win a girl’s heart, but the truth is a bit different. It turns out that Conner really has a deep love for his pet turtle – named Maximus – and he used that love to drive the writing of a new hit. From the way the song was described to us, it sounds like it will be among the most emotional tracks in Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping.

"Should I Move"

Obviously rich and famous people deal with certain problems that many of us wish we could have – but Conner4Real is the kind of misguided schmuck who doesn’t really understand this distance between classes. For example, he doesn’t even think twice about going into a recording studio and singing "Should I Move," a track about how he just bought a huge new house but questions whether or not he should have chosen a different ridiculous mansion.

As mentioned, this is just a fraction of the soundtrack that will be playing all throughout Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, and just a tease of what the Lonely Island team has up its sleeves. If they can come up with songs this mind-bendingly funny stupid, one can only imagine the depths of the other 15 or so hits that we’re waiting to hear.

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping will be in theaters on June 3rd.

It’s been two years since we first heard that Judd Apatow was producing a new film created by The Lonely Island, the trio of Saturday Night Live writers that combined comedy and music into some of the show’s best viral content in years. While little is known about the movie as a whole, we now have our first look at the film, in the form of a poster. This also gives us the film’s official title: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping.

Needless to say, the title is perfect. Early reports were that the film was going to be taking aim at the musical concert/documentary film style, such as the recent Katy Perry: Part of Me or Justin Bieber’s Never Say Never. This subtitle, Never Stop Never Stopping, drives the idea to its logically absurd conclusion. Andy Samberg also looks perfect.

What’s great about the poster is that other than the title, there’s actually nothing overtly funny here. If you walked past this poster in the movie theater lobby and weren’t paying close attention, you’d likely think it was an ad for an actual concert film. We expect that there will be many people who aren’t directly familiar with the name Lonely Island and probably will believe this movie is legitimate.

Of course, even if you did think this movie was playing it straight, the poster is still ridiculous, and that’s part of the joke. Along with the poster we also have the official plot synopsis for Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping. It lines up with some of the early reports of what the film is about, but gives us a bit more detail as well.

The original word was that the unnamed film would focus on a boy band, made up of the three members of The Lonely Island, Adam Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone. Now, it sounds like idea is to only tell the story of a single pop singer, Samberg’s character, known as Conner4Real. While the other two members of the trio will have plenty of work to do as both co-writers and co-directors on the project, we’re sure they’ll find their way in front of the camera as well, even if they won’t be key characters.

The Lonely Island has always been good for four minutes of entertainment as part of a sketch comedy show, but time will tell if they can make the transition to feature films. Many have tried to translate Saturday Night Live success to the big screen, but not all have succeeded. Is Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping going to be a solid gold hit? What do you think? We'll find out for sure on June 3.

Late last week, news came out of the Cannes Film Market announcing that Judd Apatow was teaming up with the men from The Lonely Island to make a feature film. What that news lacked, however, was a firm title for the project, or a description of what the movie will be about. Well, you need not wonder any longer, as plot details for the feature have just become public.

Deadline has the scoop on the name of the project, referring to it as Conner4real. In the movie, Andy Samberg will be playing the titular Conner, who sees his life start coming apart at the seems when his new album completely bombs. As a means of trying to bounce back after his immense failure, he tries to get the members of his old boy band back together for a reunion. Samberg's Lonely Island cohorts Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer will be playing the other two members of the boy band, but that will actually be one of two jobs they have on the production, given that they are attached to the project as co-directors.

The report says that Conner4real will take "a potshot at fluffy music documentaries including Justin Bieber: Never Say Never and Katy Perry: Part Of Me." What's unclear is whether or not this means that the film will be made as a documentary, or if it's going with a more traditional format.

Obviously The Lonely Island trio won't be the only actors featured in the film, and according to The Wrap the project has actually already picked up a few talented co-stars. Sarah Silverman will be playing Conner's "sarcastic publicist," while Tim Meadows is going to play the star's extremely overworked but relentlessly positive business manager. Imogen Poots is also attached to join the production, though exactly what her role would be in the movie is unclear at this point.

Conner4real could possibly be a big win for the Lonely Island trio - which notably hasn't had a ton of success at the box office. Though they have both developed cult followings, neither of Akiva Schaffer's previous directorial efforts - Hot Rod and The Watch - managed to do any significant business. Likewise, Jorma Taccone's first time helming a feature was Macgruber, which a notable flop when it came out in 2010. This new film could be a chance at redemption.

Production on Conner4real has already begun in Los Angeles, and while Universal is attached to the project, a release date has not yet been carved out. Given the scheduling of filming, however, it's likely that the movie will find its way to a theater near you sometime in the spring or summer of 2016. Stay tuned for more updates as they become available.

The inimitable trio collectively known as The Lonely Island has been cultivating lasciviously self-deprecating, old-school hip-hop-inspired laughs for quite some time. However, the comedy group, consisting of Saturday Night Live cast alum, Andy Samberg and writers, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone will soon occupy the top of a prominent marquee with their upcoming movie, produced by none other than mirth maestro, Judd Apatow.

While early news of Apatow’s involvement on The Lonely Island project had been revealed a little less than a year ago, the filmmaker/producer took to his personal Twitter account this morning to reveal that production has commenced, also revealing a teaser poster.

While no title has been confirmed, the poster, in a seemingly self-satirizing way, names the film, The Lonely Island Presents: Top Secret Untitled Lonely Island Movie. While next to nothing is known about the specifics of the project, the poster depicting the trio of Samberg, Schaffer and Taccone looking chill in the back of a limo, decked in white could be telling. The group seems to be playing themselves, or, at least, some cinematic version of themselves that blurs the lines of reality. The film will almost certainly cull material similar to what we’re used to seeing from their repertoire, which includes their SNL-associated music video numbers such as "Dick in a Box," "Jizz My Pants," and "YOLO." In fact, their groundbreaking 2005 Chronicles of Narnia-inspired short, "Lazy Sunday" could be arguably considered an early viral hit that helped put YouTube on the map.

The film will be co-directed by troupe members Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone; each of which have had experience behind the camera for comedy vehicles that have fallen flat at the box-office, but gained a some cult credibility in their aftermath. Schaffer directed Samberg in his only headlining wide-release role in 2007’s Hot Rod, and also had the dubious distinction of helming 2012’s The Watch - the neighborhood watch-themed film that suffered from horrific timing due to then-current events in Florida surrounding the death of Trayvon Martin at the hands of neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman. Meanwhile, Taccone directed Will Forte in the 2010 film adaptation of his recurring SNL sketch, MacGruber. Perhaps, though, the presence of Apatow could be the critical ingredient which draws the right amount of disciplined inspiration out of this directorial duo.

However, when it comes to Apatow, you have a person whose plate is as full as they come. He is currently readying his first directorial feature since 2012’s This is 40 with this summer’s Trainwreck. Plus, he is also serving as producer for an untitled movie with Leslie Mann, and on next year’s Netflix-exclusive franchise comeback Pee-Wee’s Big Holiday. He’s also writing a screenplay called Redeployment, which will, oddly enough, be an Iraq/Afghanistan War-themed comedy. Thus, Apatow’s involvement could simply be in the limited capacity of guidance and structure.

Nevertheless, it seems that The Lonely Island boys will be set loose in Los Angeles to wreak hilariously melodic havoc when their still-untitled feature film shows up at theaters on a date to be determined. However, given that it’s filming now, a 2016 date seems a safe bet.

More often than not, the Academy Awards ceremony can be a real drag. However this year’s was giving an injection of awesomeness thanks to Tegan & Sara and The Lonely Island’s appearance and rendition of The Lego Movie’s "Everything Is Awesome," which benefited from having a number of rather sensational cameos. You can watch it in all of its glory below.

Superb. Simply superb. That song could brighten up even the darkest of Sundays. Fully equipped with a plethora of Oscar statuettes that were made from LEGO, the vast array of performers stooped into the star-studded crowd and handed them out to a number of individuals. Foxcather’s Steve Carell and Channing Tatum were each treated to one, while Oprah Winfrey somehow even managed to bag herself one too. How? Because she’s Oprah, that’s how. Whatever she wants, she gets.

After being introduced by Marion Cotillard (which was a delightfully random, but perfect choice), an animated segment started off the performance, and then, suddenly, the gathered choir cut straight to Tegan & Sara on stage belting out the track. The stage then turned around to reveal Akiva Schaeffer, Andy Samberg and Jorma Taccone, otherwise known as The Lonely Island, and the effervescent trio immediately bounced into action and began effortlessly sprouting off the contagiously joyous lyrics to the LEGO Movie track. Plus they were wearing light blue suits that you would normally associate with a 1970s prom. And capes. Each of them wore a cape too. But they managed to pull off the attire with aplomb.

They didn’t arrive to the stage alone though. In fact they brought along someone inside a rat costume who danced next to them, break-dancing construction workers, and Will Arnett in a Batman suit, who did his best Christian Bale impression, rocked out on a fake guitar and mumbled his way through his section of the song. The Roots’ drummer, Questlove, also held up Will Arnett’s amp and then whacked away on a kit, while the sways of dancers seamlessly moved together and then the entire piece ended with an explosion of confetti. Because how else would you end it?

All in all, there probably wasn’t a better way that the Academy could have celebrated The LEGO Movie. Well, maybe they could have given the beloved movie a nomination in the Best Animated film category. This snub incensed so many moviegoers and critics last month that it managed to overshadow the other nomination announcements. Not that Disney’s Big Hero 6 didn’t deserve to be honored. It was a scintillating joy-ride of action, animation and comedy that was as heartfelt as it was enthralling. It’s just that The LEGO Movie was, simply put, absolutely awesome.

Well, this is certainly good news. In fact, one might describe the directorial development you'll soon read about as 'cool beans'...

Sorry, that just seemed like the only way to announce that the third member of The Lonely Island will finally be making his contribution to Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Obviously, the sitcom stars Islander Andy Samberg but fellow frontman Jorma Taccone (seen cool beansing above) has also directed an episode and now, according to THR, Akiva Schaffer will complete the connection by shooting the season finale of the Golden Globe Best Comedy.

To be honest, I was a little surprised that Schaffer wasn't asked to direct the B99 pilot given that he's shot the bulk of the videos starring the Golden Globe Best Actor in a TV Series, Musical or Comedy, including Samberg's first feature film as the lead. Not that creators Mike Schur and Dan Goor made the wrong move by bringing in Phil Lord and Chris Miller (quite the opposite, they're 'awesome' and also have the Cloudy Meatballs connection to Samberg), it just seems like either of his comedic compatriots could easily have got the first call.

I know Hot Rod and MacGruber (directed by Schaffer and Taccone, respectively) didn't do gangbusters at the box office, however, both are brilliant as far as I'm concerned and I'm happy that all three friends are now part of the best comedy on TV. Actually, Lord and Miller joining the team so to speak (or the trio joining theirs) is good for everybody because it results in things like an extended version of Tegan and Sara's "Everything is Awesome" featuring The Lonely Island.

But before leaving you with the official music video for Lord and Miller's The LEGO Movie, "made by Markus Jolly, Age 6," it's worth mentioning that the dynamic directing duo will be back next fall with another comedy at Fox. Plus, the project also stars another former SNLer, with MacGruber himself, Will Forte, playing The Last Man on Earth. Forte's ties to Lord and Miller go way back, at least four score and seven years, and it's truly awesome to see them all winding up on the same network.

Without further adieu, Tegan and Sara featuring The Lonely Island....

Brooklyn Nine-Nine returns with Episode 18, “The Apartment,” on Tuesday, February 25 at 9:30 p.m. ET on FOX. Created by Michael Schur and Dan Goor, the comedy stars Andy Samberg, Andre Braugher, Melissa Fumero, Terry Crews, Joe Lo Truglio, Stephanie Beatriz and Chelsea Peretti.

When you have a cast that includes the likes of Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill and Richard Ayoade, there is a particular level of pressure involved. Because you want to create a balanced ensemble, there is one side that says each actor should have equal time on screen, while the other says to just let the camera follow the funny. And it was certainly something that director Akiva Schaffer had to deal with while making The Watch.

With the new science-fiction comedy in theaters this weekend, I recently had the chance to speak with the filmmaker on the phone about his time making the movie. Check out our conversation below in which he talks about the evolution of the script, the amount of improvisation that was done on set, and what it was like working with expert creature actor Doug Jones.

I know that this project was actually in development for a while, but how much did the script change from when you first signed on to what we see in the final cut?

Well, I came on in May of last year after the Seth [Rogen] and Evan [Goldberg] script had been written. That was the first draft I ever read, was already Seth and Evan’s – pretty much what we shot draft. And you’re asking what change between what I read in May and now?

Yeah.

A bunch of stuff. Seth and Evan were still on as writers working with us so it wasn’t like they turned in the draft and we were like, “That’s the end of that!” They were around. It’s just a bunch of examples between then and now. I don’t know how boring this answer is about to get to be [laughs]. We added the skateboarding kid, the thing with him was new – we just thought that there needed to be some sort of escalation in the danger. We added the whole egging thing, the whole interrogation thing, the whole kid-getting-killed thing. The whole third act, I would say, got kind of switched around. Just the sort of normal, development-y stuff you do when you’re kind of honing everything.

Were those changes during pre-production and development or were you also still coming up with stuff while you were shooting?

Mostly pre-production. Because I came on in May but we didn’t shoot until October, so we had like five months. Also, just tweaks for the actors as we started casting, getting Vince [Vaughn] and Ben [Stiller] had signed on just before me and they all had the thing about like, “Oh, I feel like my character, if he was more like this… I would not have him say this kind of thing…” So everybody starts weighing in so that everyone is comfortable with the material and everyone feels like they can deliver on the roles. So it wasn’t just me, it was everyone kind of weighing in so I could make it something I would be comfortable shooting and make it and they could make it better for acting and et cetera, et cetera.

On that note, this movie had a great ensemble; really four of the funniest actors working today. When you’re shooting though, are you actively trying to spread around the laughs or does your camera just follow the funny?

It’s a blend of both. I don’t think we were consciously thinking like, “Oh, I haven’t heard from that character in a while, I need to give him more lines so everybody has more lines.” I don’t think it was ever about that. We just made sure that everybody had their little story, whatever it is, and then just tracking it through. It’s kind of all the same thing. You’re trying to make it as funny as it can be, but you have these four guys so you’re like, “What would this character say in this circumstance? And then, “What would this guy be saying?” You start to think of a joke for each one of them.

Did you allow for a lot of improvisation on set?

I mean, our working mode was basically was just do two to five takes on average to get the “as written” done, and then as soon as that was done we would sort of turn over to what we called “free ones.” I think that’s a Vince term. He would be like, “Free one? Can we get a free one?” So it would basically be I would be watching the monitors and at the point where I knew I had the scene and I was going to be fine in editing then I would yell, “Alright, free one!” And then those guys are just so good. I’m sure every time they’re doing it as-written they’re thinking of the other things that they could be saying. So by the time that I said “Free one” they had what sounded to me like a stockpile of different stuff to try. And then also through all the different revisions of the script I had this system. I had this assistant named Ethan whose whole job was to compile all the old drafts and right before we would shoot a scene he would hand me the scripts, like every version of the scene, so I could mine it for lost looks that had been written along the way, or just cool lines that I was like, “Oh, you know what? That line is kind of worth it!” And so I would just quickly leak in a little dialogue of my own things that I could just shout out. “Remember this one, guys? Try that!” Just so that we would have as much stuff as possible. Those guys would just bring great, surprising jokes when you let them go. Most scenes that ended up in editing were I would use a lot of the written and then I would use bits and pieces from the improvised and it would move and everything. Some things, though, after they started improvising just evolved so much that we ended up using most of the made-up stuff that they made up.

This is your second feature after Hot Rod, and I know you also directed a lot of the Lonely Island digital shorts for SNL, so I’m curious what you took away from those experiences that you applied to working on this movie.

I don’t have a pat answer for that one [laughs]. I was just 26 and we had had just gotten done with our first season of real TV and then we jumped right into a real movie, so it was all really exciting. But everything was kind of a learning process. Everything was new, from working with a crew to shooting on film, every part of it. So I kind of learned all the basics there. And then over the last six years of shorts I learned to work with bigger crews, because we did some pretty big music videos that would rival a movie crew for the day, and I got to do all the different genres and play with black-and-white and do slo-mo and use a crane and do a cool tracking shot, steady-cam, and just playing with all of the tools you use in a movie. So by the time I got to this movie I was much better equipped overall for every aspect of the filmmaking. And then new challenge of this was managing an ensemble of a bunch of big actors at once rather than one host who you could just kind of revolve around. Those were things I never did before.

You also have the CG and the alien side to this story, and I wanted to ask about the experience working with Doug Jones. The stuff we’ve seen him do with Guillermo del Toro in the Hellboy movies and Pan’s Labyrinth are just amazing and I was hoping you could talk a bit about working with him on this movie.

He’s awesome. Have you interviewed him before?

I never have, actually.

We’ll, you’ll enjoy it [laughs]. He’s one of the nicest, sweetest guys – not being Hollywood to say it – he’s just such a nice guy. We were just lucky to get him because we were like, “We need one of those guys who is really good at doing that kind of creature acting.” And then they were like, “We have this guy,” and we were like, “Holy shit! Alright!” So it was awesome. He gets in this crazy suit that in between takes they have to unzip and put stands on him because it would just get hot as well. We were shooting the scene where Evan and Jamarcus find the alien for the first time in the backyard. It was maybe 12 degrees out that night, it was freezing, and everybody was freezing, and Doug was just cooling out, just fine [laughs]. And then we had the big mask and the animatronics, so there were three guys off to the side with radio controls, like they have with radio-controlled cars, just controlling the face and then Doug would just do these little weird twitches and cool walks and things that would just give it personality that makes you feel like it had thought, which was just awesome. And then on certain shots we would use CG to enhance things, like make him look deadlier, or replace an arm, or dilate the pupils in his eyes or something. Just little things to make it feel more alive.

I also wanted to take the chance to ask about The Adventurer’s Handbook, as obviously you worked with Jonah Hill on this movie as well. Is that project still happening?

There is no exact plan on it, but I did just talk to Max Winkler, who is one of the writers on it, like maybe three weeks ago about it. Just figuring it out and Jonah…everybody is willing to bring it back to life. We don’t know if it would be the same cast or different people now or if Jonah would even be in it or if he would just be a writer/producer on it. But we’re all still excited to give it a go, so it’s definitely not dead, but there is no concrete plan.

The Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman case is one of the most hotly debated subjects in the country right now, but regardless of who is right there is one company that is most definitely being hurt: 20th Century Fox. This summer the studio is distributing Neighborhood Watch, a new film written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill and Richard Ayoade. While the trailer that was released in February seemed harmless at the time, in retrospect some of the things don't play well at all (such as Jonah Hill pointing his finger like a gun and firing off a round). The case has already affected Fox's rollout plans, as marketing for the film has been pulled, but how do you move forward without seeming like you're trying to sweep the real issue under the rug? You advertise the aspect of the movie that can't be compared to the Martin/Zimmerman case.

For Neighborhood Watch that means playing up the aliens and sci-fi aspects of the story. The New York Times says that from here on forth the marketing for the Akiva Schaffer-directed comedy will not so much be looking at the main characters like vigilantes, but, instead, like Ghostbusters (which has been what the studio has been comparing the movie to internally). The article says that if things had continued as plans, the aliens likely wouldn't have shown up until much closer to the film's release date.

I think that it's worth noting that when our own Katey Rich wrote up the first trailer for Neighborhood Watch she titled it "Neighborhood Watch Teaser Trailer Boasts Child Harassment But No Aliens." What I'm aiming at is that we've known about the sci-fi elements of the new movie for months now, so if you're afraid that this means Fox is going to spoil the entire movie, I wouldn't be too concerned. The movie will be released on July 27th - as previously planned - and you can read more about it in our Blend Film Database.

Thus far, Neighborhood Watch has brought together quite the impressive veteran cast. In addition to Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn at the top, Jonah Hill, Richard Ayoade, Will Forte and Rosemarie DeWitt have all signed on for supporting roles. Even the young Nicholas Braun has had multiple film roles and was a star on ABC Family's 10 Things I Hate About You. Finally the cast has gotten some new blood.

Variety reports that Erin Moriarty, who played Whitney Bennett on six episodes of the soap opera One Life To Live last year, has been cast as Vince Vaughn's daughter in the 20th Century Fox sci-fi comedy. The movie is about a group of husbands and dads who form a fake neighborhood watch committee so that they can get some time away from their families. This plan goes awry, however, when the group accidentally discovers a plot that could put the entire world in jeopardy. While the young actress doesn't have many titles on her resume, her first film, John Huddles' The Philosophers, is set to come out next year.

The film is being directed by Akiva Schaffer based on a screenplay by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Superbad, Pineapple Express). The project was originally developed for filmmaker David Dobkin and Will Ferrell, but when the project stalled last year Rogen and Goldberg were called in to rewrite the script.

While I can't imagine Moriarty's role in the movie is very big - the plot revolves around Vaughn basically abandoning her to hang out with his friends - I think it would be pretty hard to complain when your name is mentioned with such an awesome cast. Neighborhood Watchis scheduled to hit theaters on July 27, 2012.

Does Chris Tucker have an immensely successful side business that I’m completely unaware of? Though he’s been starring in movies since the early 90s, Tucker only has 11 films on his resume (the last one being 2007’s Rush Hour 3) and only began doing stand-up comedy again this year. Whether he’s a financial genius who turned millions into billions or simply knows how to live with the money he’s made I don’t know, but what I do know is that it looks like he’s ready to make his way back to the big screen. Variety reports that Chris Tucker is now up for parts in both David O. Russell’s The Silver Lining’s Playbook and Akiva Schaffer’s Neighborhood Watch.

In the Russell film, Bradley Cooper stars as a teacher who has a mental breakdown and is sent to a mental hospital for four years. After getting out, he is sent to live with his mother and while trying to get his wife back meets a young neighbor (Jennifer Lawrence) who has some issues of her own. Should negotiations go through, Tucker will play a mental patient who grows to be friends with Cooper while on the inside. Once Cooper is released, Tucker’s character occasionally breaks out so that he can visit him.

As for Neighborhood Watch, the movie is about a group of dads who form a fake committee so that they can have some time away from their wives. Their plan backfires, however, when they uncover a plot that could spell the end of the world. Though the report only says that Tucker is “circling a key role,” meaning he may not yet be in talks, he would play a divorcee who signs up to hang out with the other men. The project already stars Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill.

Tucker actually hasn’t made a movie outside of the Rush Hour franchise since 1997’s Jackie Brown, so it will be interesting to see him as a character other than Detective James Carter. I wonder if he’ll once again be used as the annoying loud-mouth or if the projects will actually allow him to try something new.

Last week it was reported that Jonah Hill was playing hardball with Fox while negotiating for a role in Neighborhood Watch. Because of the incredible testing numbers for the upcoming Moneyball, Hill's people were asking for a price much higher than his standard fee. As a result, the studio was facing a quandary: spend the extra dough and add an extra recognizable face to the poster, or find an up-and-comer that will do the job for a cheaper price but would fail to be an asset for the marketing department. Fox has gone with option A.

According to THR, Hill has officially signed on to co-star in Neighborhood Watch. The young actor joins Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Rosemarie DeWitt, all of whom are already attached. The plot centers around a group of dads who form a fake neighborhood watch group just so that they can have some time away from their wives, but everything gets too real when they uncover an alien plot that promises to destroy the world. Hill will "Vaughn's sidekick", a young man who lies about his past to make himself sound more like a badass. Though the project has been around for years, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg wrote the most recent draft and Lonely Island's Akiva Schaffer is attached to direct. The film will begin production this fall in Georgia.

Given that Hill is close friends with Rogen and Goldberg (Hill's big break came with their script for Superbad), I'm curious if that was a factor in Fox's decision. Is it possible that the writing duo wrote the part with Hill in mind, which in turn made it harder for Fox to say no? It's a long shot, but it also wouldn't be too surprising if it ended up being true.

Comedy trio The Loney Island, best known for songs like "D*ck In A Box" and "J*zz In My Pants," are coming to Xbox Live. This Thursday, you'll have the opportunity to play Call of Duty: World at War with them.

To get a chance to play with Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Caccone, send a Xbox Live friend request to the these three Gamertags: LoneIsland GwF1, LoneIsland GwF2, and LoneIsland GwF3. The game session starts at 12 PM EST on Thursday so be sure to log onto Xbox Live a half-hour early.

Yes, noon on a Thursday. That's the catch. Should be perfect for you college kids but the rest of us are SOL. Lonely Island's debut album Incredibad was released on February 10th and comes with the songs featured on SNL digital shorts like "D*ck In A Box," as well as several new tracks.