Though he declared years ago that he was retiring from filmmaking, The Flash" and "Supergirl"), what he's really eager to do is get back to his own, original ideas. Now, the director has announced that he's reviving two of his most beloved characters for another big screen adventure.
In a lengthy post on Instagram shared this week, Smith announced that he's currently working on the script for "Jay and Silent Bob Reboot" (yes, that's the actual title -- for now, anyway), featuring the triumphant return of the stoner heroes he first introduced in his debut film, "Clerks." The duo -- played by Jason Mewes and Smith himself -- have popped up in several Smith productions over the years, and headlined their own movie, "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back," in 2001.
A photo posted by Kevin Smith (@thatkevinsmith) on
As the filmmaker explained, he had recently tried -- unsuccessfully -- to make sequels to his early flicks "Clerks" and "Mallrats," and when those projects stalled, he focused his energies on other work, including the CW shows and his films "Tusk" and "Yoga Hosers." But Smith was still missing the characters he created as a young filmmaker ("I'm getting eager to play with my old toys again," he wrote), leading him back to Jay and Silent Bob.
Here's how Smith described the writing process, the film's plot, and his plans for production:
... [A]ll last month, I had the time of my life laughing while writing "Jay and Silent Bob Reboot" - a fun flick in which the Jersey boys have to go back to Hollywood to stop a brand new reboot of the old "Bluntman & Chronic Movie" they hated so much. It's a tongue-in-cheek, silly-ass satire that pokes fun at the movie business's recent re-do obsession, featuring an all-star cast of cameos and familiar faces! And I already met with the good folks at Miramax and they're into it, so I'm hoping we'll be shooting in the summer!
Stay tuned for more updates from Smith. We have a feeling he's not done sharing his excitement over the project.
Katie Nowak Roberts is a freelance writer and pop culture junkie based in Rochester, New York. Her work has also appeared in Uproxx, (585) magazine, Indianapolis Monthly, The Record newspaper (Troy, New York), Syracuse Woman Magazine, Making Music Magazine, and International Musician (official trade publication of the American Federation of Musicians).