Clerks II
10RELEASE DATE Aug. 18
WHY WE CAN'T WAIT After Jersey Girl, we want to see Kevin Smith get back to his roots: verbal wit, slacker angst, dense pop cultural allusions, and hilarious raunch.
THE PREMISE Now in their 30s, Dante (Brian O'Halloran) and Randal (Jeff Anderson) are still working dead-end service jobs. But maturity and adult responsibility loom, as Dante is about to move out of state to be with his fiancée.
SOURCE Smith's career-launching 1994 film
THE BACKSTORY Having seen his last movie overshadowed by the tabloid frenzy surrounding stars Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez, Smith says: ''I thought, 'The next movie I want to make, no famous people in it, just actors I love and people I want to work with.''' However, Weinstein Co. co-chief Harvey Weinstein insisted that Smith hire at least one boldface name, so Rosario Dawson has a prominent role as the boys' boss, a manager at a fast-food joint.
BURNING QUESTION Is making a sequel to his signature film a sellout move for Smith or, conversely, a cultish in-joke that won't be appreciated beyond his fan base?
COME FOR Smith and his ragtag crew of Jersey smartalecks
STAY FOR The Hollywood ringers Smith has rounded up, including Dawson and (in a cameo) Smith regular Affleck
