Despite claiming that he was set to retire from filmmaking with Clerks III, filmmaker Kevin Smith has decided to add another movie to his CV before he reunites with Dante and Randall, returning to the horror genre for the “monster movie” Tusk. Speaking to EW Smith has confirmed that Justin Long (Jeepers Creepers, Drag Me to Hell) has joined the cast of the film, which is also set to feature Smith’s Red State star Michael Parks, and centres around a guy (Long) who finds himself turned into a human walrus.
“I think Tusk will be an ivory bridge, if you will, to Clerks III,” Smith tells EW. “I finished up the script [for Clerks] in May or June, but the timetable is pretty tough because the budget is larger. Tusk is a moveable feast at like $2 million and change, so it was way more nimble to put that together. Tusk was just something to do while waiting for news back on Clerks III. Suddenly, people were like, ‘Really? A human walrus? That sounds fucked up.’ It suddenly took pole position. Then I started going, ‘Look, I do this, it’s going to make Clerks III even easier to do.’ I can warm up for Clerks III. It’s been a couple of years. Maybe I need some warmup pitches. But you definitely will see Tusk before you’ll see Clerks III. And if I have my way, you’ll see Tusk up in Sundance in January.”
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