The female-led 21 Jump Street spinoff film just took a major step forward, as not only has 22 Jump Street co-writer Rodney Rothman signed on to pen the script for the project, but he will also likely end up directing the Sony Pictures film as well.
Deadline broke the news yesterday, detailing in their report that Rothman has “an eye toward directing,” meaning that chances are he’ll end up helming the picture. He recently turned in the “latest draft of the script,” which Broad City scribes Lucia Aniello and Paul W. Downs and Bob’s Burgers producers Lizzie and Wendy Molyneux have all had a hand in. Neal Moritz, best known for his work on the Fast & Furious series, will produce.
Details on the project are currently scarce, but the plot will follow two female cops who go undercover at a school, much like 21 Jump Street (both the film and 1987 TV show that started it all).
After several months of next to no updates on the status of the spinoff film, it seemed as though the project was permanently shelved by the studio, which, clearly now, isn’t the case.
On the subject of projects previously thought to be abandoned, the report also mentions that the 21 Jump Street/Men in Black crossover film, floated around a couple years ago, is still in development as well. Stars of 21 and 22 Jump Street, Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, are still expected to reprise their roles as Schmidt and Jenko, respectively.
While future installments in the 21 Jump Street film franchise are very much up in the air, it wouldn’t be wise to bet against seeing at least one more entry in the series, especially considering that audience interest still seems to be there, as evidenced by the increase in box office returns from 21 Jump Street to 22 Jump Street and the lingering cultural impact of the films.
Originally published December 2, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
