New Line Recruiting for POLICE ACADEMY Reboot
New Line is looking to recruit a writer and director to relaunch the Police Academy franchise.
Just like what Warner Bros. did with the National Lampoon's Vacation series, they're letting their sister company New Line take the Police Academy title out of its library, as if to say, "Here, you throw this out." Like a freakin' fruit cake at Christmas!
But original producer Paul Maslansky is back, and has high hopes for the movie. He told THR:
It's going to be very worthwhile to the people who remember it and to those who saw it on TV. It's going to be a new class. We hope to discover new talent and season it with great comedians. It'll be anything but another movie with a numeral next to it. And we'll most probably retain the wonderful musical theme.
Growing up, I've watched nearly all of the Police Academy movies. You know how many I remember well? None. All I can conjure up is there was a guy who made crazy sound FX with his mouth... I don't know what he did other than that, Guttenberg was cool at the time... kind of, and Bobcat Goldthwait talked really funny... he still does.
The 1984 original starred Steve Guttenberg as Mahoney, a repeat offender who, as an alternative to a jail sentence, is forced to enter the academy when the city throws open the doors of its police force to any recruit, much to the chagrin of its serious officers. The misfit officers -- Moses Hightower (Bubba Smith), gun-crazy Tackleberry (David Graf), mousy Hooks (Marion Ramsey) and sound effects-spewing Larvell Jones (Michael Winslow) -- band together and, of course, save the city.
In all, the franchise spawned six sequels -- each more tame and kid friendly than the one before -- which took in about $240 million worldwide and inspired a couple of TV series.
The tone of the reboot is unknown, but I doubt they'll go Observe and Report dark, or be as sexually or drug-driven as Super Troopers.
I think the most apt and all encompassing views on the Police Academy franchise come from the man himself.... Homer Simpson, who said to his son Bart:
We live in a society of laws. Why do you think I took you to all those Police Academy movies? For fun? Well I didn't hear anybody laughin', did you?
And when his wife Marge joined the police academy in Springfield, he said to his kids:
When I first heard that Marge was joining the police academy, I thought it would be fun and zany, like that movie -- Spaceballs. But instead it was dark and disturbing like that movie, Police Academy.
That's all the convincing I need that this will probably end up being bad. Homer Simpson, what would I do without you?