The Three Stooges Is Getting an Action-Oriented Sequel

By  · Published on May 8th, 2015

20th Century Fox

If there’s one thing I’ll say positively about the Farrelly Brothers’ Three Stooges movie, Chris Diamantopoulos is pretty great as Moe. But he’s pretty great in a lot of things, including his current gigs as a regular on HBO’s Silicon Valley and as the voice of Mickey Mouse for a Disney Channel cartoon. The chameleonic actor doesn’t need more of The Three Stooges, but I know he was actually very passionate about getting and performing the role, so even if I would rather see him do other things, I can be happy for him if he’s interested in doing more slapstick playing this modern version of the iconic comedy trio.

Fortunately for him, he will be able to do more Moe, as there’s a Three Stooges sequel in the works. According to /Film, Diamantopolous and his fellow remade stooges played by Sean Hayes (as Larry) and Will Sasso (as Curly) are all on board for the follow-up, which will reportedly be an action-comedy instead of just another showcase for the boys’ shenanigans. They’ll even be joined on screen by an as-yet-undetermined “major action star.” Mel Gibson, a longtime (original) Three Stooges fan, is the logical choice, right? Or is he still too much of a turn-off for audiences?

Those who don’t seem to be returning for Three Stooges Two are Bobby and Peter Farrelly, and we can assume the cast of Jersey Shore won’t be asked back. It’s unclear if 20th Century Fox is even involved. With the Farrellys gone, the script for the sequel is being written by Cameron Fay, who worked on the upcoming Taran Killam vehicle Brother in Laws. If you want to see his goods now, though, check out his comedy short films Sitting Babies (watch it here), which like the first Three Stooges movie reminds me of Problem Child, and Tom’s War on Terror (watch it here). Maybe he’ll be get to make this his directorial debut.

Christopher Campbell began writing film criticism and covering film festivals for a zine called Read, back when a zine could actually get you Sundance press credentials. He's now a Senior Editor at FSR and the founding editor of our sister site Nonfics. He also regularly contributes to Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes and is the President of the Critics Choice Association's Documentary Branch.