Pamela Anderson announced for new ‘Naked Gun’ movie
There’s no real reason for a reboot of The Naked Gun to exist, yet it’s on the cards. Although it’ll be hard to top Leslie Nielsen’s legendary original effort, the addition of Pamela Anderson to the cast is the latest sign the upcoming movie might just be capable of justifying its own existence.
The original series began with short-lived TV show Police Squad! before spawning a trilogy of movies starring Nielsen as the bumbling Frank Drebin. The series came along at the perfect time, when big screen parody was at its peak, and attempts to reinvigorate the franchise have been going on for many years.
A fresh iteration of Naked Gun was first announced in December 2013 with The Hangover and The Office star Ed Helms in the lead role. Fast forward a decade, and Liam Neeson is headlining the film as Drebin. The grizzled veteran is hardly known for his comedic chops, but then again, neither was Nielsen before Airplane! first showcased his mastery of deadpan ridiculousness.
Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane is producing the project. The script was handled by Akiva Schaffer, Dan Gregor, and Doug Mand, who recently revitalised a popular 1980s comedy property to fantastic effect with the sly and subversive Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers. Schaffer is directing, and as a founding member of The Lonely Island and director of cult favourites Hot Rod and Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, there’s plenty of proven talent attached behind the camera.
Anderson’s role hasn’t been confirmed as of yet, but she’ll be playing the love interest of Neeson’s Drebin, which, by extension, makes her the reboot’s equivalent of Priscilla Presley’s Jane Spencer. The original pairing generated plenty of chemistry between their bouts of buffoonery, something the new central duo will have to work hard to match, never mind emulate.
The Naked Gun will mark Anderson’s first role in a feature film since 2018’s French-language action comedy Nicky Larson et le parfum de Cupidon, and her first role in an American production since horror thriller The Institute the previous year. If her most prominent part in years goes to plan, then a renaissance could well be on the cards.
Anderson was one of the most famous faces on the planet during the ’90s but has since actively stepped back from Hollywood. However, she made her Broadway debut in Chicago in 2022, and also issued a rebuttal regarding Pam & Tommy through Netflix documentary Pamela, a Love Story. If The Naked Gun maximises its comic potential when it releases on July 18th, 2025, she could be on course for her biggest and most notable hit in decades.
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