Latest news with #Harold&KumarGotoWhiteCastle
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Harold & Kumar to get another sequel! Creators of the cult classic stoner film confirm; everything to know
Remember Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle? (2004) Well, everyone's favourite stoner cult classic is now getting a fourth part as the creators behind Netflix's Cobra Kai — Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg, and Josh Heald — have officially signed on to write a new installment of the franchise. Hurwitz and Schlossberg will also direct the film, which is currently in development under Lionsgate's Mandate Pictures. It's a homecoming of sorts for the duo, whose Hollywood careers were launched by scripting the 2004 original and then directing its 2008 follow-up, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. The franchise also boasts a third film — A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, directed by Todd Strauss-Schulson. John Cho and Kal Penn, who famously played the uptight Harold Lee and the carefree Kumar Patel, are expected to return, but no contracts have been finalised. Neil Patrick Harris, who played a drugged-up, fictionalised version of himself in the series, has not yet been confirmed either. The original Harold & Kumar film, directed by Danny Leiner, follows the two unlikely best friends as they embark on a late-night quest for White Castle burgers. Fueled by marijuana and munchies, they stumble into absurd scenarios, from racist cops and escaped cheetahs to a drug-fueled Neil Patrick Harris joyride. While the announcement has stirred up excitement among nostalgic fans, not everyone is sold on the idea of a fourth film. 'The first one was great. The second one was mostly boring but had a few funny moments. The third one is absolute trash. I'm not particularly excited for a fourth movie,' one fan admitted on X. Others speculated about the plot, guessing everything from an ICE-themed satire to Harold & Kumar's midlife crisis. But most expressed confusion over the announcement coming before the leads had officially signed on. 'Weird to announce it when the two stars haven't signed deals,' one user pointed out. 'They must be very close or Kal and John have a leg up in negotiations and the studio's pressuring them by announcing it,' reasoned another. For many, the idea of seeing Harold and Kumar return, even to a suburban nightmare instead of a burger joint, is enough to spark some cautious excitement.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
‘Harold & Kumar 4' in development; John Cho and Kal Penn expected to return
Harold and Kumar are back! Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg, the writers of the Harold & Kumar films and the directors of 2008's Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, have closed a deal to write and direct a fourth instalment of the popular buddy stoner comedy movie series. They will be joined by Josh Heald, with whom they collaborated on Netflix's martial arts comedy series Cobra Kai. According to The Hollywood Reporter, actors John Cho and Kal Penn, who played the titular roles, are expected to return for the fourth film, though no deals have been closed so far with the actors. 'We're fired up to bring Harold and Kumar back in a return to the unapologetically R-rated, smoke-filled chaos that started it all. It's high time they puff and pass their wisdom onto a new generation. Just don't tell their kids,' said Hurwitz and Schlossberg in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. The first Harold & Kumar film, titled Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle and directed by Danny Leiner, followed Cho's Harold Lee, a Korean American, and Penn's Kumar Patel, an Indian American, as they take a rather adventurous road trip to a burger joint named White Castle to satiate their munchies. The success of the 2004 film led to two sequels, 2008's Escape from Guantanamo Bay and 2011's A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas, both directed by Todd Strauss-Schulson Interestingly, all the three films also featured popular actor Neil Patrick Harris appearing in a cameo as himself. It remains unknown if the actor will return for the fourth instalment. Hurwitz, Schlossberg and Heald will also produce the film under their Counterbalance Entertainment banner. Greg Shapiro, the producer of the Harold & Kumar films, also produces.
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
John Cho, Kal Penn to return in new Harold & Kumar film? Here are latest updates
Cobra Kai creators are developing a new Harold & Kumar movie. John Cho and Kal Penn are expected to return in the cult comedy's latest adventure. The trio behind Netflix's breakout series Cobra Kai-Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg and Josh Heald are developing a brand-new Harold & Kumar film, reported Deadline. The project is being backed by Lionsgate's Mandate Pictures, the same studio that supported the stoner duo's original escapades two decades ago. This marks a homecoming of sorts for the creators, who launched their Hollywood careers with the now-iconic franchise. They co-wrote the first film, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, back in 2004 and later made their directorial debut with 2008's Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. While casting is still being finalised, John Cho and Kal Penn who played Harold Lee and Kumar Patel are reportedly in talks to reprise their roles. Though their deals aren't officially closed, sources suggest both actors are likely to return for this new chapter. Hurwitz and Schlossberg will direct the film from a script co-written with Heald. The trio will also produce under their Counterbalance Entertainment banner, alongside longtime franchise collaborator Greg Shapiro. Nathan Kahane, who currently serves as Lionsgate's Motion Picture Group President, is also on board as producer, just before his planned departure from the studio. Dina Hillier will executive produce for Counterbalance, reported Deadline. What started as a modest box office performer has grown into a full-blown cult classic. The original Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle may not have made headlines during its theatrical run, but its life on DVD was a different story altogether. That sleeper success spawned two sequels, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008) and A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas (2011). All three films raked in a combined $104 million worldwide. The franchise has built a loyal fanbase thanks to its absurd humor, sharp commentary and offbeat chemistry between the leads. Is a new Harold & Kumar movie officially happening? Yes, it is currently in development with the creators of Cobra Kai at the helm. They haven't signed officially yet, but are expected to reprise their roles. How many Harold & Kumar films are there so far? Three: White Castle (2004), Guantanamo Bay (2008), and 3D Christmas (2011).
NBC News
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- NBC News
Cheech & Chong talk about their 'last' road trip — though it probably isn't
It was almost half a century ago that Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong teamed up for the first time on screen and told a lighthearted story about two pot-smoking buddies on a road trip. Over time, the 1978 movie "Up in Smoke" became a cult classic that transformed the two comedians and actors from hippie outsiders to comedy icons. Now, longtime Cheech and Chong fans or those who want to know more about them can see Marin and Chong reunite on screen in ' Cheech & Chong's Last Movie,' released nationwide Friday. Directed by David Bushell, the documentary weaves never-before-seen footage from Marin and Chong as the two take another road trip — this time spanning five decades of their ultimately widely successful careers spanning platinum albums and box-office fame. 'They found the essence of Cheech and Chong. And that itself is worth exploring, because there's a Cheech and Chong in everybody,' Chong said about the documentary in a joint video interview with Marin. "That's who we are; we're everybody out there. And that's why people can relate to us.' For many fans today, stoner comedy invites them into playful spaces that use humor to blur or soften social boundaries. "Up in Smoke" helped create and popularize a subgenre of later hits like 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High,' 'Friday,' 'Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle' and 'Pineapple Express,' among many others. But when it first came out, Cheech and Chong's "Up in Smoke" was certainly not a hit with everyone. 'Any film that asks you to go smashed before you see it must have something really bad to hide,' the late Chicago-based film critic Gene Siskel said on his award-winning movie review TV show 'Siskel & Ebert.' Siskel picked 'Up in Smoke' as a 'Dog of the Week' — his choice for worst film — and criticized its dialogue, saying it was "80 minutes of two jerks saying nothing but 'hey man.'' Yet those two casual words, 'hey man,' would nevertheless resonate with many fans and signal a generational change in mainstream culture. 'In their sleepy, unshaven way, Cheech and Chong constitute a visual affront to the straight world just by walking down Main Street,' a 1978 New York Times review said. 'It's a revolution without danger, however, because, as the movie's popularity shows, this particular revolution has already been won. The true eccentrics are no longer Cheech and Chong but the clean‐shaven nitwits, like the cops in 'Up in Smoke,' who persist in their attempts to uphold repressive traditions.' Frederick Luis Aldama, a pop and Latino culture scholar who is the Jacob & Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities at the University of Texas, Austin, said in a phone interview that 'if you really distill it, stoner comedy is a great equalizer. It puts the doormat out for everyone to generally enter that place. And it's a reminder for a time and space where you can be yourself, let yourself go.' Aldama remembers seeing 'Up in Smoke' with his maternal 'abuelita' (grandmother). He remembers her 'laughing uproariously' throughout the film, which made him laugh, too. It also gave him a sense of pride as a Latino, he said. Marin grew up in East Los Angeles, the son of Mexican American parents; his father was a World War II Navy veteran and a Los Angeles policeman. Chong grew up in Calgary, the son of a Canadian mother with Scottish and Irish roots and a Chinese father. The comedians, Aldama said, brought elements such as Mexican American lowrider culture into the mainstream, for example, but 'they did it in a way where you weren't asked to judge or laugh at it, but simply enjoy it and laugh with it. And this put a positive spotlight on our communities, our neighborhoods.' Marin's and Chong's childhoods were separated by more than 1,500 miles, and different circumstances would ultimately bring them together in an unexpected way. Marin dodged the Vietnam War by moving to Canada. And Chong, who had been a guitarist for Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers, said he lost his job in Motown. 'I was just trying to get my life back together. And Cheech was trying to live with the fact that he had to live in Canada. And then we met,' said Chong, 86. 'We realized that we had this understanding.' The seed for their understanding was planted at a Vancouver topless nightclub where Chong was a part-owner and had formed a hippie-burlesque comedy troupe. Marin would join the group as a writer. And then, the duo continued to develop their stoner act even after the troupe folded. After years of success, the two went their own ways, and they have some frank discussions in the documentary about their relationship. Asked whether comedy could still be transgressive, Marin says it can, as long as there is an authentic connection between the comedian and the audience. 'It depends upon the right comedy and if it's truthful comedy. It's not the comedy that wants to please everybody. We want to please ourselves. And in doing so, [we] do something that's relevant for the people,' said Marin, who's 78. "I think that will keep happening, absolutely." But for comedy to succeed today, Chong said, it can't simply repeat what was done in the past. 'We're living, like, in a travelogue,' he said. 'We're no longer in the '60s, the '70s or the '80s or the '90s. We're now. And so, in order to stay relevant, you got to acknowledge what's going on now. Because we're alive and we're still breathing, we can still think about it.' Asked whether this was really their "last" movie and what would get them together on screen again, Marin said, "Very easy, money!" "No, we're going to keep hammering until they take the cold, warm bong out of my hand," Chong said, as the two men laughed.
New York Times
27-02-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
‘Rats!' Review: Keep Texas Weird
'Rats!', a gross-out action-comedy in the vein of 'Pineapple Express' and 'Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle,' throws us back into the suburban-youth aesthetics of the mid-aughts: its Hot Topic threads, pop-punk music and chintzy stoner décor. Set in a fictional version of Fresno, Tex., called Pfresno, circa 2007, this underdog caper also satirizes the state's conservative culture — its thing for gun rights and law enforcement. In the beginning of the film, Raphael (Luke Wilcox), a listless 19-year-old, is caught graffiti tagging a phone booth. Officer Williams (Danielle Evon Ploeger), a comically noxious policewoman, tackles the teen to the ground, leading to his arrest and his forced embroilment in a sting operation against his cousin Mateo (Darius R. Autry). Mateo is a genial weed-dealer whose roomies include a pet pig and a meth-smoking squatter — though he's obviously not the homicidal plutonium dealer Williams suspects him to be. The directors Maxwell Nalevansky and Carl Fry build out this madcap conspiracy story with potty humor (courtesy of the very unladylike Officer Williams), bloody practical effects and surreal flourishes, which play out against intentionally unglamorous backdrops (strip malls and shabby backyards). Bizarre digressions (like the screening of a rap music video about the joys of selling crack; or the perverse relationship between a foxy, cocaine-addicted reporter and her cameraman) will leave you slack jawed, whether you vibe with the film's particularly obscene style of deadpan absurdism or not. If anything, the onslaught of weirdness is hypnotizing. As a visibly small-scale and local undertaking, the film feels genuinely connected to a vision of working-class Texas and its various characters. 'I don't know any of these people, this is just my circumstance,' says Raphael in one scene, which feels like a meta commentary on the experience of living in a country of such vast contradictions. Rats!Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 25 minutes. In theaters.
