On Friday, July 24, Amazon MGM Studios skipped ludicrous speed and went straight to plaid in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con as the cast and filmmakers of SPACEBALLS: THE NEW ONE sat down for a galactic panel.
Following a heartfelt and hilarious video message from the legendary Mel Brooks, moderator Kevin Smith welcomed stars Daphne Zuniga, Keke Palmer, Lewis Pullman, Josh Gad, director Josh Greenbaum, and screenwriters Dan Hernandez and Benji Samit to the stage.
As the crew arrived on stage, Spaceballs Troopers combed the audience looking for Dark Helmet impersonators only to uncover Dark Helmet himself, Rick Moranis, hiding amongst the fans. Moranis then joined the group onstage to thunderous applause and a standing ovation to mark his return to the galaxy.
During the panel, filmmakers Josh Gad and Josh Greenbaum reminisced about pitching the sequel to Mel Brooks, while Daphne Zuniga and Rick Moranis reflected on returning to their iconic characters and reuniting with Brooks for the first time in decades. Keke Palmer shared what it was like stepping into the iconic SPACEBALLS universe, and Lewis Pullman reflected on joining the franchise that launched his father Bill Pullman’s career. While Lone Star couldn’t be at the panel in-person, he was there in spirit – treating Hall H to a special video message.
Gad also paid homage to one of his personal idols, John Candy, who he described as the heart and soul of the original film.
As your father’s brothers’ nephew’s cousin’s former roommate Mel Brooks would put it, the Hall H crowd proved that the Schwartz is still very much with us.
SPACEBALLS: THE NEW ONE will be released in theaters in the U.S. and select international territories in April 2027.
Screenplay by | Benji Samit, Dan Hernandez, Josh Gad
Produced by | Brian Grazer, Jeb Brody, Mel Brooks, Kevin Salter, Josh Gad, Josh Greenbaum
Executive Produced by | Adam Merims, Benji Samit, Dan Hernandez
Starring | Rick Moranis, Josh Gad, Keke Palmer, Lewis Pullman, Anthony Carrigan, George Wyner, Daphne Zuniga, Bill Pullman, Mel Brooks
Synopsis | Somehow, Dark Helmet has returned! Forty years after the events of the first Spaceballs, fifty years after the events of Star Wars: A New Hope, and one year after the events of The Devil Wears Prada 2, the galaxy is once again under threat. A threat so evil, so unstoppable, so completely lacking in any original ideas, that it has vowed to bring back the past… every last bit of it. With Lone Starr in hiding, Queen Vespa on the throne, and the Schwartz stretched thinner than a franchise releasing TV episodes theatrically, the only hope for the galaxy is Vespa’s undisciplined son, Prince Starburst, and a mysterious Palace advisor named Destiny. Together, they must find Lone Starr, Yogurt, and any other iconic legacy characters fans are demanding before they discover the hard way that, while some threats you can fight, the reboot is not one of them.
