May the Schwartz be with us.

It has been a while since Hollywood has put out a good spoof movie, but the genre appears to be launching a comeback with the announcement of upcoming titles like Spaceballs 2. A follow-up to one of the greatest parody movies of all time (and, not to mention, one of the most celebrated films by Mel Brooks, who previously teased the idea of a Spaceballs sequel in 2015), is now in development at Amazon MGM Studios.

Will the Schwartz also be strong with this upcoming sci-fi movie? Well, we still have a while before we can make that judgment. So before we try to enter ludicrous speed, let’s take things slow and discuss the things that we do know about Spaceballs 2 so far.

There is no confirmed release date for Spaceballs 2 as of mid-August 2024. A spot alongside the upcoming 2024 movies might be unlikely, but we can see it appearing on the upcoming 2025 movie schedule if it goes into production soon enough. If only the gag from the original Spaceballs about “instant cassettes” were real, we might be able to watch the movie already.

The only known member of the Spaceballs 2 cast at the moment is Josh Gad. However, details regarding his character, or even whether or not he will be the central lead, remain unknown for now. In addition to being his second collaboration with Mel Brooks after appearing in the History of the World Part II cast, this is actually the second time the actor has attempted to revive a property starring Rick Moranis — the first being a follow-up to the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids movies that got lost in development hell.

Gad has been acting since the 2000s, but his breakthrough came when he originated the role of Elder Arnold Cunningham in the Broadway musical satire The Book of Mormon to Tony-nominated acclaim in 2011. He went on to co-create and star in NBC’s short-lived sitcom 1600 Penn, play LeFou in Disney’s live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast, and even become part of the universe he is making fun of in the movie when he voiced “Double Agent Droid” in Star Wars Rebels. He has both a third Frozen and Angry Birds Movie in the works and a dramedy called Adulthood in production among his additional upcoming projects.

As Spaceballs 2 is still in the early stages of development, we cannot report on any details about the story at this point. However, being a sequel to a comedy that famously pokes at the Star Wars movies, we might be able to infer that it will take aim at the more recent installments of Lucasfilm’s groundbreaking franchise set in a galaxy far, far away.

The original Spaceballs from 1987 is heavily inspired by George Lucas’ 1977 sci-fi movie masterpiece, but with many distinct and uproariously silly differences — including a half-man, half-dog creature, laser-emitting rings, and a metaphysical force holding the universe together called the Schwartz. Bill Pullman and John Candy star as for-hire pilots Lone Starr and Barf, who are enlisted to rescue Princess Vespa (Daphne Zuniga), and her robotic courtier, Dot Matrix (Joan Rivers) from the ruthless Dark Helmet (Rick Moranis) and President Skroob (Mel Brooks). Brooks also appears as a master Schwartz-wielder named Yogurt, and his frequent collaborator Dom DeLuise provides the voice of galactic crime boss Pizza the Hut.

Similar to when George Lucas handed directorial duties off to Irvin Kershner and Richard Marquand for the latter installments of his original Star Wars trilogy, Spaceballs director Mel Brooks will be succeeded by someone new to handle the follow-up. Set to helm Spaceballs 2 is Josh Greenbaum, who actually has a connection to Star Wars, having directed a short documentary profiling sound designers who have worked on the franchise called Behind the Mac: Skywalker Sound.

In 2017, Greenbaum made two feature-length documentaries both exclusively available with a Hulu subscription — Becoming Bond and Too Funny to Fail: The Life and Death of the Dana Carvey Show — before making his fictional feature debut with the hilarious Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar in 2021. He more recently directed 2023’s Strays, which features a funny Josh Gad cameo, and his upcoming Netflix movie — a documentary about Will Ferrell and Harper Steele called Will & Harper — premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2024.

While Mel Brooks may not be in the director’s chair this time, the 97-year-old comedy legend is still involved with the sequel as a producer. I must admit that I hope to see him in front of the camera, too, coming back as Yogurt and, perhaps, as Skroob as well. Also signed on as a producer is Gad, who also co-wrote the Spaceballs 2 screenplay, which he previously teased in an Instagram post from early June 2024.

Gad’s Spaceballs 2 co-writers are Benji Samit and Dan Hernandez, who also have their own connection to the very franchise they are poking fun at, having written the upcoming Star Wars TV show, Star Wars LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy, which becomes available with a Disney+ subscription in September 2024. The duo previously worked with Gad as writers for 1600 Penn and Apple TV+’s Central Park and are also known for penning Pokémon: Detective Pikachu in 2019 and 2023’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.

Spaceballs 2 is a sequel to a film that spoofs a franchise which requires you to watch every installment that came before to understand what is going. That being said, it would probably be a good idea to watch the original beforehand, which can be done with an MGM+ subscription.

It should be noted, however, that this new film will actually be the second follow-up to Spaceballs. An animated spin-off series aired on G4 in 2008, for which Brooks’ returned as co-creator with Thomas Meehan and as the voice of President Skroob and Yogurt, along with Zuniga as Vespa, Joan Rivers as Dot, and Dom DeLuise as Pizza the Hut. Despite that, the show was not very well received by critics or fans, but anyone interested in checking it out can purchase episodes on Amazon.

Stream Spaceballs on MGM+. Buy Spaceballs: The Animated Series on Amazon.

Ya know, a perfect official title for the sequel would be Spaceballs: The Schwartz Awakens, but I can see a lot of fans being disappointed if it does not uphold Yogurt’s premonition that he and Lone Starr will reunite in Spaceballs: The Search for More Money. We shall find out what Brooks, Gad, and co. end up calling the film soon enough but, until then, be sure to check back here for updates.