(L to R) Kal Penn and John Cho in ‘Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle’. Photo: New Line Cinema .
Preview:
- A fourth ‘Harold & Kumar’ movie is in development.
- Stars Kai Penn and John Cho are likely to return.
- ‘Cobra Kai’ trio Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg and Josh Heald are writing the script.
Back in 2004, ‘Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle’, a seemingly innocuous stoner comedy, helped launch a host of careers as it gave attention-grabbing roles to stars John Cho and Kai Penn and also introduced the comedy writing stylings of Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg.
It seems somehow fitting then, that, 21 years and two sequels later, the team is getting back together for a fourth entry.
“Fast food. High times.”
The Hollywood Reporter brings word that Hurwitz and Schlossberg alongside writing partner Josh Heald, are returning for the new movie, while Cho and Penn –– albeit without signed deals yet –– are expected to reprise their roles.
Here’s what Hurwitz and Schlossberg said about the new development:
“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.”
Related Article: 11 Things You Never Knew About ‘Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle’ on its 15th Anniversary
What was the story of ‘Harold & Kumar go to White Castle’?
(L to R) John Cho and Kal Penn in ‘Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
In the original movie, nerdy accountant Harold (Cho) and his irrepressible pot-loving friend, Kumar (Penn), get stoned watching television and find themselves utterly bewitched by a commercial for White Castle.
Convinced there must be one nearby, the two set out on a late-night odyssey that takes them deep into New Jersey.
Somehow, the boys manage to run afoul of rednecks, cops and even a car-stealing Neil Patrick Harris (playing a crazed version of himself) before getting anywhere near their beloved sliders.
That original film, directed by Danny Leiner (‘Dude, Where’s My Car?’) was a hit –– made for $9 million, it earned more than $23 million worldwide.
A 2008 sequel, ‘Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay’, followed, which saw our heroes mistaken for terrorists and thrown into the titular prison. They escape and return to the US, where they proceed to flee across the country with federal agents in hot pursuit.
(L to R) John Cho and Kal Penn in ‘A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Hurwitz and Schlossberg stepped up to direct as well as write, and the movie, made this time for $12 million, still brought in audiences, taking home $43 million globally.
Finally, ‘A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas’ arrived in 2011, with the duo causing a holiday fracas by inadvertently burning down Harold’s father-in-law’s prize Christmas tree. Hurwitz and Schlossberg were the writers once more, with Todd Strauss-Schulson (‘Isn’t It Romantic’) in the director’s chair.
Since the movies, Schlossberg and Hurwitz, alongside writing/producing partner Heald (who the duo cast in a tiny cameo for ‘Guantanamo Bay’) have gone on to be known for successful Netflix series ‘Cobra Kai’, which continues the ‘Karate Kid’ movies’ story years later.
The show, which recently wrapped up its sixth and final season, looks set to launch spin-offs, but the main trio are focused on this movie for now.
There’s no word on a story for the new movie, but that mention of kids in the writer/directors’ statement hints that we’ll see the duo settled into domestic life with families and causing chaos with the next generation.
When will the new ‘Harold & Kumar’ movie be on screens?
With the movie in very early development, and no official distributor yet –– though Lionsgate owns Mandate, the production company behind this latest entry, so it’s not hard to imagine the company taking it –– there’s no official word on a release date yet.
(L to R) John Cho and Kal Penn in ‘A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Movies in the ‘Harold & Kumar’ franchise:
Buy Harold & Kumar Movies on Amazon