Honey, I Shrunk the Kids helmer Joe Johnston is reportedly in talks to direct Disney’s upcoming reboot of the classic family movie. Simply called Shrunk, the project comes from a pitch to Disney from actor Josh Gad, who is also in talks to star. According to a new report from Variety, Disney had been eyeing other directors for the planned reboot, but ultimately felt bringing back Johnston to direct was the perfect fit for the project. Todd Rosenberg is also attached to write the screenplay, and David Hoberman and Todd Lierberman are producing under their Mandeville Films and Television banner.
In the original 1989 film, Rick Moranis stars as Wayne Szalinski, a scientist who inadvertently shrinks his son and daughter along with two neighbor kids with a shrinking ray he invented. To return home and be brought back up to their normal size, the kids must traverse the tall grass of the lawn to make their presence known before they get eaten by an insect… or even Wayne himself when one of the boys winds up in his father’s bowl of cereal. The sequel had two follow-ups, Honey, I Blew Up the Kid and Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves, with Moranis reprising the role of Wayne in each installment.
For Shrunk, Josh Gad will play a grown-up version of Wayne’s son, but there’s no word yet on if Moranis himself will be reprising the role. Because the actor is virtually retired, his inclusion in the reboot seems unlikely, but because he reprised his Spaceballs role for The Goldbergs, anything is possible. The plot will follow Wayne’s son following in his father’s footsteps by accidentally shrinking his own children, apparently not learning any lessons from what was surely the most traumatic experience of his childhood.
Reportedly, Shrunk was initially considered for a debut on Disney+, but the folks at Disney are now leaning towards giving the sequel/reboot a theatrical release. No word on when the project will go into production or when we might expect to see it. Stay tuned for more updates.
Related Article: ‘Honey, I Shrunk the Kids’ Is Getting Rebooted with Josh Gad
