Back in December, one of the strangest email threads we had the privilege of hearing from involved the potential crossing over of the 21 Jump Street and Men in Black . The crossover would make sense. Both are buddy comedies, and both have grossed hundreds of millions of dollars in each installment.
Of course, in these emails, it is very difficult to peg how serious someone is. This could have very well been pitched and quickly forgotten, for all we know, but it looks like there may be more to this idea than meets the eye. Phil Lord, one of the directors of 21 Jump Street and 22 Jump Street (not to mention the stellar Lego Movie ), had a word with MTV News at the Golden Globes, and what he said may have re-opened any closed doors that may have existed on the subject.
“Nothing’s changed. It’s still a crazy idea, and we only do things that seem like they’re going to be terrible. We’re really focussing on what’s a great story for Schmidt and Jenko and how to tell the next chapter in their lives. And perhaps use creatures from another world at the same time.”
So let’s say the next Jump Street film does happen to involve the Men in Black… what does that mean for Agent K and Agent J? Will Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith be brought on board as well? According to Lord, that’s still under discussion.
“We’re developing a lot of things, you know. And they may or may not all happen, but that’s how the business works.”
As crazy of an idea as all this is, it’s somewhat brilliant. Despite the fact that the latest Men in Black film brought in over $600 million , it isn’t really a franchise that fans are asking for more of. The Jump Street franchise is in a different position altogether. The credits of 22 Jump Street poked fun at the dozens of directions each sequel could go, as if to say it was content with sticking to two films.
All the same, if you mix the ultra-tongue-in-cheek script of the Jump Street franchise and add in the big budget flare of the Men in Black series, you’d get something that can potentially gross over $1 billion worldwide — as films with heavy visual effects tend to be more successful overseas. To top it all off, it’s easy to imagine just how memorable and hilarious it could be to see Schmidt and Jenko take on aliens. If Phil Lord and Chris Miller are on-board, the film’s practically guaranteed to be at least worth watching.
What do you think of a 21 Jump Street / Men In Black crossover? Is it an absolutely brilliant idea, or a pathetic cash grab? Sound off below!
