Summary
The creators ofCobra Kaiare set to bring their stonercomedyfranchise back. Most know Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg as the creative minds behind the hitKarate Kidrevival seriesCobra Kai. The show recently ended after six seasons, leaving the team open to new projects.
Hurwitz and Schlossberg got their start as the writers ofHarold & Kumar Go to White Castle, a 2004 comedy about two stoners on a night-long journey to theirbeloved fast-food restaurant. John Cho played Harold, the straight-laced office worker whose best friend, Kumar, played by Kal Penn, continually lures him into marijuana-fueled hijinks. The movie was made for only $9 million, with a box office return just north of $23 million, and DVD sales reportedly netting nearly $30 million, a franchise was born.Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Baywas released in 2008, withA Very Harold & Kumar Christmashitting theaters in 3D in 2011. After a lengthy hiatus,Harold & Kumarare set to make a comeback.
According toThe Hollywood Reporter,Hurwitz, Schlossberg, and fellowCobra Kaicreator Josh Heald will write a newHarold & Kumarmovie. Hurwitz and Schlossberg will also direct the follow-up film, with original stars John Cho and Kal Penn expected to return.However, no official deals have been struck with the actors. Hurwitz and Schlossberg did release a statement, promising, “unapologetically R-rated, smoke-filled chaos that started it all.”
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.
Harold & KumarHelped Launch The Careers of John Cho, Kal Penn, And The Writers
Hurwitz and Schlossberg previously directed and wrote the stoner comedyHarold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. The duo merely wrote the third installment,A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas. However, for Cho and Penn, the stoner comedy helped launch their careers. Penn was often cast in stereotypical roles beforeHarold & Kumar, offering him his first starring role after films likeVan Wildercast him alongside Ryan Reynolds. Cho led an eclectic career before the comedy franchise started, but was most well known for his role inAmerican Pieas one of the “MILF Guys.”
FollowingHarold & Kumar, Cho has gone on to star in several high-profile projects, including J.J. Abrams’Star Trekseries and thelive-actionCowboy Bebopadaptation. Penn was starring on the TV seriesHousein 2009 when he chose to step away from acting, instead serving the Obama administration as an Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement. Penn has since returned to acting, with roles in hit horror films likeSmileand TV shows likeAmerican Horror Story. Hurwitz and Schlossberg found acclaim withCobra Kai, which reinvigorated theKarate Kidfranchise.
Further details on theHarold & Kumarsequel will follow as the project develops, but the plot seems likely to involve them having kids, proving that it is a unique new world for the two stoners. Other actors, like Neil Patrick Harris, may also join the project.
