The ‘Spaceballs’ Sequel — Is It Really Happening? Here’s The Absolute Truth

When Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released in mid-December and started bringing in millions upon millions of dollars, it made many directors and filmmakers hopeful. It also started a lot of rumors about new films, and one of the biggest had to do with a Spaceballs sequel from Mel Brooks. It’s been talked about for decades and things are heating up, but is there any truth to it?

Just about anyone and everyone wants a sequel to Spaceballs, which was released in 1987, and who wouldn’t? The thing is, going down the paper (internet link) trail, it doesn’t seem as concrete as some make it out to be.

It was actually on December 18, 2015, that the rumors about Spaceballs 2 heated up, and that’s the day that The Force Awakens hit theaters. Nerdist posted an article saying that a new film was in the works from Mel Brooks, but more research needs to be put into it all.

It actually referenced a Brooks’ appearance on Adam Carolla’s Take a Knee podcast from February of 2015, where he said that the Spaceballs sequel was in the early phases of development. Yes, it was said to be tentatively titled Spaceballs: The Search for More Money, which is appropriate considering the joke from the original film.

New rumors have said that it would be called Spaceballs: The Schwartz Awakens, but that’s only speculation and has come about in fan art.

This then goes back further to an article from Parade in May 2014, where Brooks also spoke of a sequel to Spaceballs. This is where things get a bit hazier unless it’s changed since then, but it adds a bit more doubt to things.

It was said that Rick Moranis said Spaceballs 2 almost happened at one point. Now, Moranis is retired from acting and has been for many years, but could Brooks get him back and have the sequel made?

“Without Rick, I wouldn’t do it. I’ve got the helmet in storage, just waiting for him. [Laughs] It’ll fit nobody else. Rick is five-five-and-a-half. It’s a perfect fit for the big helmet. He was such a genius. And God bless John Candy who’s gone. Tom [Meehan], who wrote it with me, has great ideas and I would love to do Spaceballs 2.”

Rick Moranis has been said to be retired for many many years, but he revealed to the Hollywood Reporter that he isn’t actually retired. Well, not exactly. He took an 18-year hiatus from acting after his wife, Ann, passed away from breast cancer in 1997 to focus on raising his two kids.

With his kids grown now, he is thinking about getting back into acting, but he turned down a walk-on role in the Ghostbusters reboot. He didn’t do it because he is “retired,” but because it made no sense to him.

“I wish them well. I hope it’s terrific. But it just makes no sense to me. Why would I do just one day of shooting on something I did 30 years ago?”

Maybe that gives some hope to the idea that he could reprise his role as Dark Helmet in a Spaceballs sequel since it would likely be a rather serious part. The thing is, it’s not like Brooks hasn’t tried before to get him to do it.

“I’ve asked him plenty of times and he’s been really strict about it.”

It all boils down to what people want to believe and what they hear when Mel Brooks talks or what they read when looking at his quote. He has admitted that he knows Spaceballs 2 would make a lot of money, but he’s never really come flat out and said, “We are making this movie.”

Looking more at his quote from his interview with Adam Carolla last year, he never actually said that a Spaceballs sequel was going to be released.

“And I’m thinking now, if I said, if I did a movie that came out right after Star Wars comes out, you know, maybe a couple of months later, Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money, I’d have a big weekend, you know, no matter what, even if it fell on its a** and you know, didn’t get that money back.”

With the 30th anniversary of the original Spaceballs happening next year, some should be optimistic that there will be a new home version of it released or maybe it will even land in theaters again for a short run. Brooks is also 89-years-old, so if he is going to have anything to do with it, then he needs to get on it now.

There are so many other obstacles that must be overcome as well in order for the film to even come close to comparing to the original.

• Rick Moranis is somewhat retired.
• John Candy passed away in 1994.
• Joan Rivers passed away in 2014.
• Dick Van Patten died in 2015.

Without those first three alone, the main villain and two of the four heroes wouldn’t be in the film. It could be possible to get back everyone else for the Spaceballs sequel, but is it even feasible or worth it?

Yes, it would be worth it because newbies would be interested in what the craze and hype are all about. Longtime fans would be there in a heartbeat to see a Spaceballs sequel, and it would bring in plenty of money. The thing is, the hype right now is rather unwarranted, as Mel Brooks has never really confirmed that the movie is on the way.

[Image via Brooksfilms]