Now THIS Is How You Reboot a Movie

When we heard that Jack Black, Paul Rudd, Thandiwe Newton, and Steven Zahn were remaking Anaconda, let’s face it: We were already in. Who is not going to watch a Jack Black/Paul Rudd horror comedy? But also, why would Jack Black and Paul Rudd sign on to a remake of a movie that was great only in its badness?

The answer lies in the trailer, which reveals the premise, which is kind of brilliant. Written by Tom Gormican and Kevin Etten, who also wrote the meta Nic Cage flick The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, the reboot follows a group of friends going through a midlife crisis who decide to remake a favorite movie from their youth. That movie: Anaconda. Jack Black and Paul Rudd are 56. How can Anaconda be from their “youth”? Oh, it’s because that movie is 28 years old. Wow.

They get out to the jungle to film their reboot, but lose their snake, so they decide to find their own. And therein they encounter the killer anaconda, which does what the anaconda did in the 1997 film. That’s fantastic. All that is missing is Nic Cage playing himself.

Watch the trailer:

Anaconda opens on Christmas, which feels like the perfect day to watch it.