Though it has been written on the wall for some time, today Sony has confirmed via The Wrap that it plans to push ahead with the rumored female-led 21 Jump Street spinoff, not to mention the proposed crossover with the studio’s long-standing Men in Black franchise.
In accordance with yesterday’s report, the female-driven Jump Street spinoff will indeed be scripted by Broad City alum Lucia Aniello and Paul Downs, while Sony is yet to tap writers for the sci-fi crossover event. However, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller have expressed their interest in the bizarre project, which would allegedly see Schmidt and Jenko venture into the sharp-suited world of MiB in order to investigate extra-terrestrial lifeforms.
It’s a bold concept, sure, but if 21 Jump Street poked fun at the incessant tendency to reboot old films and TV shows, while its sequel shifted the satirical lens to sequels, then a possible 23 Jump Street would align perfectly with the current trend of the shared cinematic universes.
As for the female-driven spinoff, potential stars include Dakota Johnson and Rye Rye – Schmidt and Jenko’s undercover rivals from the first installment – while there’s every possibility that Sony and the creative team will decide to include a series stalwart such as Ice Cube’s Captain Dickson to anchor the adjacent feature. It’s too early to tell at this stage, of course, and considering that Johnson is, erm, all tied up with the Fifty Shades sequels, Sony may look further afield before filling the two respective roles.
Whatever the case, the company clearly has big plans for the Jump Street franchise. Plus, considering that an all-female Ghostbusters reboot is in the works under the astute eye of Paul Feig, Hollywood now has a vested interest in marquee, female-driven blockbusters – and it’s about time, too. As for the Men in Black crossover? I guess those two sons of bitches are going to alien-killing school.
