The Naked Gun Returns After 30 Years With Liam Neeson

After a three-decade gap, the hokey, hysterical stomp of The Naked Gun franchise is coming back to theaters. The long-awaited spoof comedy series is set to return to theaters August 1, 2025, with a new installment featuring Liam Neeson as the son of the series’ late protagonist Frank Drebin in what’s being described as a “legacy sequel.”

The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! was released in 1988 to mixed reviews but quickly garnered cult-classic status as a slapstick-crime-solving comedy. It starred Leslie Nielsen as well-meaning, bumbling Detective Frank Drebin, who attempts to save Queen Elizabeth II’s life after an assassination plot is put in motion during her state visit to the U.S. The film’s weird, elastic humor found an audience, leading to two direct-to-video sequels. The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear in 1991 pitted Drebin against a plot to kidnap and replace the world’s most powerful nuclear scientist, while 1994’s Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult saw Drebin come out of retirement to prevent a bomb plot against the Academy Awards.

After the release of the third film, though, The Naked Gun went dark. Paramount first suggested a reboot in 2013, casting The Office star Ed Helms as the unrelated Frank Drebin. The project never advanced past early development, with original producer and director David Zucker publicly refusing to get involved with any revival of the series. Zucker, who helmed both The Naked Gun and its sequel, had a caveat for any possible franchise reboot: “Anything that’s done won’t be as good,” Zucker had said in 2017, when he declined to join Seth MacFarlane’s proposed script for a Naked Gun film about Drebin’s son being a secret agent, which Zucker had been tapped to rework. “So if we’re talking about inferior quality films, I’m happy to sit this one out.”

The former Zuckerade had temporarily returned to the franchise by the time that Drebin reboot went back to the starting line, but by the time the effort was given fresh life in 2021, Zucker had opted out, and Seth MacFarlane took the lead on the reboot. Enter Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin Jr. The policeman’s son is a lieutenant in the LAPD, and Neeson’s character, described in press notes as a mix of “his father’s look, but with his mother’s luck,” is in many ways cut from the same cloth as his father.

He’s joined by an ensemble cast including Paul Walter Hauser as Captain Ed Hocken, Jr., Drebin Sr.’s son and partner. Hauser, who will also soon be playing Mole Man in Fantastic Four: First Steps, joins Pamela Anderson as femme fatale Beth, whose brother is murdered and sets the plot of the film in motion. Kevin Durand, Danny Huston, Liza Koshy, Cody Rhodes, CCH Pounder, Busta Rhymes, and Eddy Yu also star.

The first teaser trailer was released in April to a mixed reception, and David Zucker reiterated his criticism of the film’s legacy to TMZ, saying, “I made the mistake of looking at it. I can’t unsee it.” There are glimmers of hope for fans, though. Neeson looks like he’s having a blast with the material, self-referencing his broad, dour “particular set of skills” character from the Taken series with one tongue-in-cheek bit where he roars at someone, “Once you kill a man for revenge, there’s no going back,” and then proceeds to rip off their arms and beat them with them. “A voice in your head saying over and over ‘That was awesome,’” he continues with the trademark Drebin deadpan.

The video also has some direct, touching homages to the franchise. Frank Jr. and Ed Jr. deliver a shout-out to their fathers with choked-up nostalgia while looking at plaques in a museum commemorating the works of their fathers’ Police Squad.

Of course, The Naked Gun is not all corny sentiment. Drebin is called to action by Beth (Anderson), who is trying to prove the murder of her brother. Should he fail to crack the case, Police Squad is being shut down. One suspect mugs the bumbling detectives by claiming that he served 20 years for “man’s laughter.” Drebin, deadpan, informs him that the charge was “manslaughter.” “Must have been quite the joke,” he replies.

Whether it’s belligerently taking over a coffee shop restroom for “police business” or waiting for his suspect’s words to register before slapping him with a stony stare and firing off a single-handedly disproven statistic, Neeson is ready for business. He’s even game to dive right in with the shenanigans, even if it means taking a fall while wearing a badge.

Some viewers may not get the new Naked Gun. It’s broad, it’s punny, and it’s all very silly. It also has the potential to be some welcome, fluffy escapism, and if the trailer is any indication, The Naked Gun 2025 may be exactly what we need to celebrate summer this year.