“God willing, we’ll all meet again in Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money!” With that line, Mel Brooks brilliantly lampooned not just the Star Wars sequels but the entire concept of endless franchise sequels. Now, in a twist that feels like it belongs in a parody itself, Brooks is actually making Spaceballs 2, and in doing so, he risks becoming the very thing he once mocked.
### The Original Spaceballs Was Unprecedented
I remember watching Spaceballs in the theater as a kid. At six years old, I was already a Star Wars fanatic and couldn’t wait to see Mel Brooks take a comedic jab at the franchise. If anyone should be excited about Spaceballs 2, it should be me. Yet, I can’t think of a worse idea for a sequel. Well, maybe Robin Hood: Men In Tights 2 would be worse, but that doesn’t make Spaceballs 2 a good idea.
### Becoming What It Made Fun Of
One of the most memorable scenes in Spaceballs is when Yogurt shows Lone Starr all the ridiculous Spaceballs merchandise. This scene was a satirical jab at the greed inherent in big Hollywood franchises. When Yogurt brings out “Spaceballs the Flamethrower,” it was a clear dig at how George Lucas was slapping the Star Wars brand on everything, regardless of whether it made sense.
Creating a Spaceballs 2 undermines the entire point of that scene. You can’t mock a greedy Hollywood franchise and then turn around and emulate it. Or rather, you can, but it makes you look like a hypocrite. While Mel Brooks making a Spaceballs 2 for Amazon almost 40 years after the original isn’t exactly the same as the Star Wars sequels, it still ruins the joke. Now, when Yogurt mentions Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money, it’s no longer a joke; it’s foreshadowing.
### Undermines Its Own Humor
This situation is almost as disheartening as History of the World, Part II. When I was younger, I didn’t understand why Mel Brooks called it History of the World, Part I. There wasn’t a Part II, and that was the joke. It wasn’t until I got older that I realized the brilliance of it. It’s Part I because history isn’t over yet. But then History of the World, Part II came along and completely ruined the joke. Now, it’s not Part I because the world is still going; it’s just to denote what volume you’re watching. Spaceballs 2 similarly undermines its own joke.
### Feels Like A Cash Grab
The original joke about meeting for Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money isn’t funny anymore. How could it be when now it’s just a line telling you what’s going to happen? It’s like telling someone the old “How do you keep an idiot in suspense?” joke and then immediately answering with, “by not answering properly so the idiot in question is forced to wait for the punchline.” It’s not very funny, is it?
The worst part is that this sequel does actually feel like a cash grab. Yes, Mel Brooks had expressed interest in making a sequel in the past—perhaps he doesn’t get his own joke—but now, at 98, I can’t imagine he had a burning desire to make Spaceballs 2 before he died.
### The Search For More Money
What makes it worse is that Spaceballs was Mel Brooks’s last good movie. If Spaceballs 2 comes out and fails—which, considering Josh Gad is the driving force behind the sequel, is a distinct possibility—it will only tarnish the image of Mel Brooks’s final masterpiece. They better at least call it The Search For More Money.
In conclusion, while the idea of a Spaceballs sequel might excite some fans, it fundamentally undermines the original film’s best joke. The original Spaceballs was a unique and unprecedented satire that poked fun at the greed and commercialization of Hollywood franchises. By making a sequel, Mel Brooks risks becoming the very thing he once mocked, turning a brilliant joke into mere foreshadowing and potentially tarnishing his legacy in the process.
Source: Various News Outlets
