Dumb and Dumber Tomade an astonishing $38 million this weekend, exceeding even the most optimistic expectations. To be clear, this long-awaited sequel featuring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels and directed by the Farrelly brothers isnt a great movie especially when compared to the brilliant 1994 original. But it hardly mattered. There was a huge appetite to see Harry Dunne and Lloyd Christmas reunite for another adventure and audiences were happy to ignore the 27% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. We didnt love it, but we eagerly await a third one.
Almost more astounding than the huge box office figures, however, is the fact that it took 10 years for Hollywood to green light the picture. For whatever reason, they werent convinced the idea of a sequel would be a surefire hit, despite the fact that Carrey, Daniels and the filmmakers were all ready to move forward. Its a perfect example of Hollywoods complete failure to realize what audiences want to see on the big screen. Here are six things the industry should learn from this.
1. Age Doesnt Matter.
Theres this persistent myth that young people wont see a movie where the stars are even close to the age of their parents. But according to The Hollywood Reporter, 43% of the audience for Dumb and Dumber To was under 25 which means that a healthy portion of the audience didnt see the original when it first came out. They fell in love with the characters later through repeat viewings on DVD and cable. Most of them could not have cared less that Jim Carrey is 52 and Jeff Daniels is 59.
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The last movies in the Die Hard and Indiana Jones franchises paired the aging star with a twenty-something; in the case of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Shia LaBeoufs character didnt even exist in the original script. But by the time cameras were rolling, Indys long-lost son Mutt was by his side through the vast majority of the picture. Nothing was going to save the wretched A Good Day to Die Hard, but that didnt mean John McClanes son had to practically be stapled to him through the entire film. Both of these were horrible, horrible decisions. Not a single young person walked out of Crystal Skull and said, I didnt care much for that old guy with the whip, but thank God Shia LaBeouf was there to do cool shit like swing from those vines Tarzan-style! We want the original crew and the original crew only, wrinkles and everything.
2. Enough With the Reboots.
Back in 2003, the good people at New Line gave us Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd. They seemed to be under the impression that we didnt care who portrayed these characters. Throw in some American Pie-like high school hijinks, and the studio brass figured the youth market would be overjoyed. They were wrong. The franchise is rarely more important than the actors. People flocked to the theaters this weekend to see Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. Period.
If theyre going to do another National Lampoons Vacation movie, we dont want Ed Helms as the star. Theres no real reason it cant be Chevy Chase and Beverly DAngelo. Hell, bring back Anthony Michael Hall and Dana Barron as the original Rusty and Audrey. The grown family can go on another vacation, maybe a road trip to Wally World before it closes forever. Its hard to imagine that concept fueling a great movie, but well still line up simply out of nostalgia and the hope they can pull it off. If they reboot the original even if they give grandpa Clark a scene or two out of pity forget it. Were staying home.
The same goes for Ghostbusters. The notion of an all-female cast is intriguing, but we still want the originals or nothing. Sadly, Harold Ramis is dead and Bill Murray is never signing onto this thing. They had plenty of years to make this happen and they didnt. Now its time to put the franchise out of its misery and simply leave well enough alone. The same goes for Naked Gun. Leslie Nielsen had a lot of living years where he would have happily made part four. Let the series rest in peace. The thought of anybody else playing Frank Drebin is just painful.
3. Give Us a Good Comedy and Well See It.
Hollywood is so fixated on churning out superhero movies right now that comedies seem to be an afterthought, especially if they arent part of the extended Judd Apatow universe. We love those movies, but theres plenty of room for laughs from other creative teams and comedians. Lord knows Dumb and Dumber To fell short in many ways, but there hadnt been any laugh-out-loud, bladder-loosening funny movies in theaters in months. Given something that even hinted at hilarity, people came running. Yes, its hard to pull off a great comedy so try harder, Hollywood.
4. The Original Creative Team Matters.
Theres a reason why the original Die Hard and Die Hard: With A Vengeance are, far and away, the best ones in the series both directed by John McTiernan. Dumb and Dumber To was directed by Bobby and Peter Farrelly, just like the original. They created the characters and understand them like no others.
Theyre making yet another Die Hard pretty soon, and McTiernans legal problems (he was released from prison earlier this year due to his involvement in the Anthony Pellicano wiretapping scandal) means that its unlikely hell helm the picture. But he should: The man has served his debt to society and its possible hes the one person on the planet capable of making a Die Hard movie that isnt a complete train wreck. (Thisdoesnt apply to Star Wars. We have more faith in J.J. Abrams than modern-day George Lucas, especially since hes honoring our first two lessons here.)
5. Were Ready For Step Brothers 2.
In many ways, Step Brothers is the Dumb and Dumber of the 2000s. Both films were successful in their original theatrical run, but once they were released on DVD, they became absolutely legendary. Near-constant showings on cable only increased the audience further, making everybody hungry for a follow-up film. The many similarities between the central characters are obvious, and we fully believe a Step Brothers sequel would be an enormous hit. Will Farrell and Adam McKay both say theyre a little burned out on sequels after Anchorman 2, but were hoping they change their mind in the next couple of years. Reclaim your dinosaurs, gentlemen!
6. Were Also Ready For Bill and Ted 3.
Before Harry and Lloyd, Beavis and Butt-head and even Wayne and Garththere was Bill and Ted. The 1989 original is an absolute masterpiece, and the 1991 follow-up is a rare sequel thats as good as the first one. (The sequels Seventh Seal-style Death character is so hysterical that he might even be a great star for spin-off movie.) Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter are both dying to make this happen and the original writers have produced a script; naturally, theyre having a near-impossible time getting the funding. Someone needs to take a look at this weekends box office figures for Dumb and Dumber To and break out their checkbook ASAP.
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