Spaceballs 2: Rick Moranis Reveals Why He Came Out of Retirement, And How the Sequel Almost Happened Before

There are a few cult classics from the 1980s that truly stand out among the rest—even within a decade that is marked by iconic movies that now have cult followings—and the 1987 parody movie Spaceballs is certainly on that list. Although the movie primarily poked fun at Star Wars, which at the time comprised only the first three movies (episodes 4-6, though), Spaceballs also satirized other major franchises, such as Star Trek and Alien.

Despite the popularity of the movie, however, Spaceballs never had a sequel, until now. With an April 23, 2027, release date, Spaceballs: The New One is officially in the works, and San Diego Comic Con 2026 has just given audiences an even closer look at what that story will entail. Thrillingly, the includes the return of beloved Spaceballs star Rick Moranis, who played Dark Helmet in the original movie, after nearly 30 years away from the big screen. Now, Moranis has addressed that hiatus, as well as his decision to come back for The New One.

Moranis Believes “It’s Time” for Spaceballs 2

Speaking at San Diego Comic Con, Moranis shared that the star-studded cast of the sequel movie was a huge factor in his decision to come back, adding, “It just felt like this is it. It’s time, and yes. I said yes, and it is the best decision I’ve ever made.” However, despite his multiple decades away from the big screen, Moranis didn’t really feel like he’d been in retirement. During the same panel, Moranis revealed that he had actually discussed a sequel with Mel Brooks back in 1989 and said, “I wasn’t really retired. I was just negotiating.”

There was, of course, a touch of humor to what Moranis was saying, as he wasn’t actually in direct negotiations for decades. However, this really did work out for the best in the end. While there no doubt would have been plenty of content available for a Spaceballs sequel following the Star Wars prequel trilogy, as those movies, too, had their fair share of cringe-worthy moments, awkward dialogue, and unusual characters (as much as I love those movies), the sequels have provided the perfect launchpad for The New One.

Clearly, The New One will be taking full advantage of that, as the infamous line from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, “Somehow, Palpatine returned,” is already being featured in footage from the upcoming movie and has been included in promotional materials before. That’s just one concept from the sequel trilogy being incorporated into the movie, though, and there are countless others that would also work well in a parody, from Rey and Kylo Ren’s Force Dyad connection to Leia flying through space and so much more.

The New One will also evidently be pulling from other newer movies as well, such as the Avatar movies, which means this sequel will be taking advantage of the many films that have come out in the decades since Spaceballs debuted. Hopefully, this will mean that both Spaceballs: The New One and Rick Moranis’ return have been well worth the (very long) wait.

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