Kevin Smith fans rejoice! The actor/writer/director of the Clerks franchise, several early Ben Affleck features, and most recently last year’s Tusk, has confirmed via Twitter his plan to make Mallrats 2.
We shoot CLERKS III in May. HIT SOMEBODY shoots September to Christmas. Then in Feb 2016, we do MOOSE JAWS. But after that? I smell a rat…
— KevinSmith (@ThatKevinSmith) March 12, 2015
Like most Smith films, the original has developed a cult following since its release twenty years ago. Mallrats starred Smith, Jason Lee (Heartbreakers), Shannon Doherty (Heathers), Ben Affleck (Gone Girl), and Jeremy London (TV’s Party of Five). The film follows two best friends who seek refuge at their local mall after getting dumped by their girlfriends. Its tagline reads: “They’re not there to shop. They’re not there to work. They’re just there.”
Smith admitted during a radio interview with Tucson’s Rock 102 KFMA that moviegoers have not been “clamoring for a Mallrats sequel,” but he “would love to make one.” He also revealed via Facebook that after completing Clerks 3, which begins filming this spring, he had been planning on retirement. The unexpected success of Tusk, however, changed everything. Now Smith is booked for the next two years, during which he will be filming Hit Somebody and Moose Jaws (which he has described as “like Jaws, but with a moose”). According to Smith, Mallrats 2 “is half-scripted right now and we’re pulling our loot together.” The sequel is set to begin shooting in May 2016, and it is still unclear whether any members of the original cast will be returning.