Rob Schneider may get a sequel to his 2001 film The Animal. The Animal stars Schneider as a man named Marvin who has a medical crisis and must receive several organ transplants. Unfortunately for Marvin, his surgeon is a mad scientist who transplants animal organs into Marvin. Soon after his surgery, Marvin begins to take on the characteristics of these animals. The Animal was directed by Luke Greenfield (Let’s Be Cops, The Girl Next Door). In addition to Schneider, The Animal stars Colleen Haskell, Edward Asner, John C. McGinley, and Louis Lombardi.
SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY
To say The Animal was an oddball comedy may be an understatement, with the film including everything from general slapstick comedy to Schneider licking Haskell’s face when he is in his dog state. Unsurprisingly, The Animal was not in the favor of most critics, who slammed the movie for being too goofy. Despite the poor reviews, The Animal performed well at the box office, doubling its budget and earnings, and having since garnered a cult following among fans of Schneider and producer Adam Sandler, and now, said viewers are getting potentially exciting news.
Now, it looks like The Animal may be getting a sequel after 20 years, according to Deadline. The new film, tentatively titled The Animal 2, is expected to be released on Fox’s Tubi, though is still awaiting an official greenlight from Fox, who must make a deal with the original production studio, Revolution, in order to officially give the go ahead for The Animal 2. If approved, The Animal 2 will be produced and directed by Schneider on a script he co-wrote with his wife Patricia Schneider, along with his writing partner Jamie Lissow. The Animal 2 would have the following logline:
“Marvin Mange, now an old dog, needs to learn new tricks as he hunts down a new uber-animal with powers far beyond his own.”
Will The Animal 2 Attract Viewers?
Given how much flack it received from critics at the time, the fact of a potential sequel to Schneider's The Animal is sure to seem strange to many. The plot itself seems similar to the first in that it invites ridiculous comedy with a sense of farcical adventure. Those critics who hated The Animal are pretty sure to hate The Animal 2 based on the description alone, as even with Schneider taking more complete creative control of the project, the sequel would still largely rely on the same concept of the original film.
Whether audiences would go for a sequel for The Animal after so long remains the biggest question behind the film's development. Since the original is not considered a mainstream classic, this sequel is not exactly long-awaited as a sequel like Top Gun Maverick was even after decades. With that said, The Animal’s box office haul and lasting impression in the cult world would suggest that audiences could go for another rendition of Schneider's bizarre comedy. On the other hand, some of the charm of the purely goofy comedy that characterized the early 2000s, and much of Schneider's career, may have faded. While audiences await new details for The Animal 2, they can revisit the original movie streaming on Hoopla and Cinemax now.
Source: Deadline