Rick Moranis made his first live-action film appearance in nearly 30 years Wednesday when he took the stage at CinemaCon in Las Vegas to promote “Spaceballs: The New One,” the long-awaited sequel to Mel Brooks’ 1987 sci-fi parody.
Mr. Moranis appeared alongside co-stars Bill Pullman and director Josh Greenbaum during Amazon MGM Studios’ presentation at Caesars Palace. His appearance onstage drew a large reaction from the crowd, though he only managed to get a few words in — part of the running gag had fellow cast members repeatedly interrupting him.
Mr. Moranis is reprising his role as the villainous Dark Helmet, marking his first live-action movie performance since 1997’s direct-to-video “Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves.” His last live-action theatrical film role came in 1996’s “Big Bully.”
The footage screened at the event offered the first real look at the film. In the trailer’s climactic scene, Dark Helmet and Colonel Sandurz — played once again by George Wyner — stand at urinals aboard their ship. A towering blue Na’vi from “Avatar” then steps up to an enormous urinal beside them. Mr. Moranis’ character utters the Na’vi phrase “I see you” — a nod to the repeated mantra from James Cameron’s sci-fi saga — and puts on 3D glasses as he eyes the alien.
Mel Brooks, appearing in a pre-recorded video message, announced the film’s official title: “Spaceballs: The New One.” “It’s just like the old one, but it’s newer,” Mr. Brooks said, explaining that the movie would not be called “Spaceballs: The Search for More Money” because, he joked, he had found the money.
Returning cast members include Mr. Brooks as Yogurt, Mr. Pullman as Lone Starr, Daphne Zuniga as Princess Vespa and Mr. Wyner as Colonel Sandurz. New additions include Josh Gad, Keke Palmer, Lewis Pullman and Anthony Carrigan, whose characters are being kept under wraps. Lewis Pullman is the son of Bill Pullman.
Mr. Gad co-wrote the screenplay with Benji Samit and Dan Hernandez, based on characters created by Brooks, Thomas Meehan and Ronny Graham. Josh Greenbaum directed.
Mr. Moranis stepped away from acting after his wife, costume designer Ann Belsky, died of breast cancer in 1991. In a 2015 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he reflected on the decision.
“I went from that to being at home with a couple of little kids, which is a very different lifestyle,” he said. “But it was important to me. I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever.”
“Spaceballs: The New One” is set for release on April 23, 2027.
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