After almost twenty years of waiting, it sounds like Police Academy fans could soon get another installment of the franchise.
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Steve Guttenberg, who has starred as Sgt. Carey Mahoney in the first few Police Academy films, recently confirmed via Twitter that an eighth film is in the works. While Guttenberg gave no details, he hinted that it is being “readied” to be made in some way.
Adam , the next Police Academy is coming, no details yet, but it is in a gift bag being readied! //t.co/HxzdmqS6WP
— Steve Guttenberg (@SteveGuttbuck) September 3, 2018
This news is surely a surprise, considering the weird tenure that the Police Academy brand has had over previous decades. After enduring a sort of cult-like success over the years in movies, animated television, and even comic books, the last Police Academy film, 1994’s Police Academy: Mission to Moscow, grossed only $126,000 domestically. The franchise was briefly revived in 1997 for the live-action Police Academy: The Series, but the IP has yet to make it into a new era.
Over the past fifteen years, there have been plenty of different attempts to bring Police Academy into the twenty-first century, with little results. Paul Maslansky, who created the series, initially announced plans for an eighth film in 2003, and the project has had many evolutions since then.
“It’s going to be very worthwhile to the people who remember it and to those who saw it on TV,” Maslansky said in an interview in 2010. “It’s going to be a new class. We hope to discover new talent and season it with great comedians. It’ll be anything but another movie with a numeral next to it. And we’ll most probably retain the wonderful musical theme.”
Most recently, New Line was developing an eighth Police Academy film in 2012, with Tosh.0‘s Scott Zabielski set to direct, but the project has seemed to linger in development hell.
At the moment, it’s anyone’s guess what this new Police Academy installment will look like, or who will ultimately be brought on to help bring it to life. But judging off of Guttenberg’s comments, maybe fans will find out what’s hiding in the “gift bag” sooner than later.
Would you like to see a new Police Academy film? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
