Neeson's turn as Frank Drebin Jr. in Paramount's reboot of The Naked Gun has reignited interest in slapstick comedies and brought new life to a classic franchise. The film's strong box office performance and overwhelmingly positive critical reception prompted speculation about possible sequels.

In anticipation of The Naked Gun’s release on the 2025 movie schedule, I figured it was finally time for me to watch Leslie Nielsen in 1988’s The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad. Now, I’ve seen it, and much like the first time I watched Airplane!, all I could think was WTF, and I mean that as a sincere compliment.

Are studio comedies so back? It’s a distinct possibility! The Naked Gun debuted at No. 3 at the box office this weekend, in line with projections. It made $17 million domestically, with another $11 internationally, for a $28.5 million global total. If the Liam Neeson–Pamela Anderson possibly maybe relationship is for PR, it’s working.