The long-awaited sequel Spaceballs 2 is finally happening, nearly four decades after the original 1987 Star Wars parody hit theaters. Amazon MGM confirmed on Thursday that production was under way, while unveiling a full cast pH๏τo with returning stars and new cast members, that poked some fun at the 2014 black-and-white cast pH๏τo of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Returning from the original spoof are Mel Brooks as Yogurt, Bill Pullman as Lone Starr, Daphne Zuniga as Princess Vespa, George Wyner as Colonel Sandurz, and Rick Moranis, ending his nearly three-decade retirement to return as Dark Helmet. They will be joined by a quartet of newcomers to the cast, Josh Gad, Keke Palmer, Anthony Carrigan and Lewis Pullman.
The studio has yet to confirm who Gad (who is co-writing the script with Detective Pikachu writers Dan Hernandez and Benji Samit), Palmer, Carrigan and Pullman are playing, but there are any number of Spaceballs legacy characters or Star Wars characters they could be portraying or parodying.
Josh Gad As The Son of John Candy’s Barf And/Or Pizza The Hut
Both of these roles would make sense, as the original actors who portrayed these characters have since pᴀssed away, and it’s also possible that he could play both. After all, Mel Brooks himself pulled double duty as Yogurt and President Skroob in the original. There is even an Easter egg for one of these characters in the cast pH๏τo.
John Candy – who played the original Barf — pᴀssed away in 1994, while Dom Deluise, who played Pizza the Hut, died in 2009.
If you look in the bottom right corner of the cast pH๏τo, you’ll notice a chair with a full pizza resting on it. This is most certainly a clue that Pizza the Hutt will return, and with the great Dom Deluise now gone, Josh Gad is a perfect pick to replace him.
Since Pullman has been confirmed as Lone Starr, it only makes sense for his sidekick, the “mog” (half-man, half-dog) Barf to return, and Gad would surely shine in this role as well. After all, it was Gad’s idea that sparked this sequel in the first place, and he would be the perfect choice to play both of these characters.
Keke Palmer As A Version Of Ahsoka Or Mace Windu
The original Spaceballs wasn’t afraid to mix things up, turning Star Wars‘ beloved protocol droid C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) into the snarky female droid Dot Matrix (Joan Rivers), and the beloved Wookiee Chewbacca into the “mog” known as Barf. With Keke Palmer’s casting confirmation, this tradition could continue, with the actress playing a female version of Mace Windu from the Star Wars prequels, played by Samuel L. Jackson.
If anyone could play a female version of a Sam Jackson character it would have to be the feisty and hilarious Keke Palmer. Since Jackson’s Windu was often more subtle and subdued in the prequels, it’s the perfect opportunity for Palmer to go over-the-top with her version. It would be quite interesting to see how she wields the “Schwartz.”
It’s also possible that she could be playing a version of the beloved Togruta character Ahsoka (Rosario Dawson), given her Disney Plus series of the same name. She could bring the same brand of brash humor to this role as she would Mace Windu. It’s also possible that she simply replaces Joan Rivers as a new version of Dot Matrix.
Anthony Carrigan As The “Son” Of Dot Matrix Or a Version of Kylo Ren
Anthony Carrigan has quickly established himself as quite the comedic force with his beloved role of NoHo Hank on HBO’s Barry and his more dramatic turn as Metamorpho in Superman. With Joan Rivers pᴀssing away in 2014, if they don’t simply recast Keke Palmer as the droid, it may make sense to have Carrigan play her “son” of sorts.
Of course, robots can’t reproduce like humans, but if there was anywhere they actually could, it would be the outlandish world of Spaceballs. And if droids could have babies, what better choice for Dot Matrix’s snarky son than Anthony Carrigan, though there is another possibility for the actor that’s just as intriguing.
It’s unclear if the sequel will be skewering the most recent Star Wars sequel trilogy, but if they do, the character most deserving of any kind of parody is Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren. Just imagine Carrigan going through an Imperial cafeteria or something, screaming, “MORE” when a meager portion of mashed potatoes is put on his plate.
Lewis Pullman As The Son of Lone Starr Or A Version of Poe Dameron
With the confirmation of Bill Pullman returning as Lone Starr, and his son Lewis as a new character, the most obvious guess would be that Lewis is playing Lone Starr’s son. Since Lone Starr and Princess Vespa got their “happily ever after,” it would stand to reason that they have a son, so Lewis’ casting would be quite logical.
Since it was revealed at the end of Spaceballs that Lone Starr actually is of royal lineage, marrying into Vespa’s royal family could mean that their son grows up to be a privileged brat, which could be some unique storytelling fodder. Still, Lone Starr is a blue-collar man, so perhaps he continues on as a mercenary, with his son riding sH๏τgun.
If Lewis Pullman isn’t playing Lone Starr’s son, then another intriguing possibility is that he portrays a Spaceballs version of Poe Dameron, the fighter pilot from the Star Wars sequel trilogy played by Oscar Isaac. Perhaps he’s playing a version of both — Lone Starr’s son who wants to break free of family privilege and becomes a Rebellion pilot.
It likely will be quite some time before we have confirmation of the characters all these new cast members may be portraying, but they are all very talented additions that can only make Spaceballs 2 even better.
