The Naked Gun franchise began modestly with 1982’s short-lived Police Squad series, created by Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker (ZAZ), which parodied police procedurals, featuring absurd sight gags, deadpan wordplay, and surreal non sequiturs. Moving forward, 1988 found the show leaping to the big screen in the form of the Naked Gun franchise that included the trilogy, The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!, 1991’s The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear, and 1994’s Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult (‘94) starring Leslie Nielsen as the bumbling but earnest Detective Frank Drebin. The films were massive hits, blending slapstick with razor-sharp parody that still stirs up laughs all these years later. With Nielsen shining bright, Priscilla Presley, George Kennedy, and O.J. Simpson came along for the ride with ZAZ at the helm. Then Nielsen passed away in 2010 at the age of eighty-four, and the franchise seemed dead…until…
A reboot was announced in 2013, but it was stuck in development hell due to rewrites, casting changes, and frequent personnel changes. Then, in 2021, Family Guy‘s Seth MacFarlane boarded the train, with Liam Neeson joining as Frank Drebin Jr. the following year. It would be another two years after the schedules cleared, and shooting started in April 2024.
Finally, the 2025 film The Naked Gun premiered in theaters on August 1st, courtesy of Paramount Pictures, generating considerable interest. Directed by Akiva Schaffer (I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson series, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers 2022), it stars Neeson, Pamela Anderson (Barb Wire 1996, The Last Showgirl 2024) as Beth Davenport, Paul Walter Hauser (Cobra Kai series, Inside Out 2 2024) as Ed Hocken Jr., Danny Huston (Yellowstone series, The Crow 2024) as Richard Cane, CCH Pounder (The Shield series, The Orphan 2009) as Chief Davis, and Kevin Durand (The Strain series, Abigail 2024) as Sig Gustafson.
There is also supporting cast in Liza Koshy (Work It 2020, Players 2024) Detective Barnes, Eddie Yu (Lucky Grandpa 2019, The Pitts series) as Detective Park, Michael Beasley (2 Guns 2013, The Fifth Wave 2016)as Detective Taylor, and cameos from Busta Rhymes as a bank robber, Wrestler Cody Rhodes as a bartender, ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic and UFC Fighter Michael Bisping, Announcer Bruce Buffer, and MMA Fighter Kamaru Usman appear as themselves or in comic roles. Additionally, Priscilla Presley returns as Jane Spencer, a touching nod to the original films.
Lieutenant Frank Drebin Jr. of the LAPD Police Squad singlehandedly foils a gang of bank robbers—while disguised as a schoolgirl. However, the robbery was merely a distraction: a mysterious device called the P.L.O.T. Device had been stolen from a safe deposit box. Drebin’s over-the-top methods get him reassigned by Police Chief Davis, who sees him as a legal liability.
While paying tribute to his late father, Frank Drebin Sr., Jr. prays for a sign—an owl—to guide him. His investigation into the suspicious death of software engineer Simon Davenport leads him into a web of conspiracy, corruption, and increasingly absurd hijinks. Alongside his partner Ed Hocken Jr., Drebin must unravel the mystery, win back his job, and maybe even save the city from a plot that is as ridiculous as it is dangerous.
Ridiculous is a compliment here. If the slapstick and running jokes, in this case, a chihuahua that appears randomly and coffee on the go, do not have you rolling your eyes or belly-aching with laughter, it is not doing its job. Overall, this film is hilarious and keeps The Naked Gun legacy alive. That is why Cryptic Rock gives 2025’s The Naked Gun 5 out of 5 stars.
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