I think we need to better define the word ‘reboot’, as reports about the cinematic resurrection of the American Pie franchise are bandying the reboot terms about more because it’s become an almost automatically pejorative terms and allows bloggers to do a lot of moaning and sighing, whether it’s warranted or not.
So, here’s what we know. The return of American Pie is not strictly a reboot (which implies going back to the beginning and starting again), it’s a sequel that would follow on from American Wedding. While Universal has continued the franchise with a series of straight-to-DVD movies, they’ve been only tangentially linked to the three theatrical outings. And to be honest, the words ‘American Pie Presents’, has becomes the equivalent of National Lampoon attaching its name to a diverse bunch of projects that have little to do with one another.
However, while it’s been known for a while that Universal wanted to take a break from the DVD sequels and try to get the franchise back in theatres, it wasn’t known what form that would take. Now the LA Times is reporting that it will indeed be a direct sequel the third Pie film, American Wedding, and will almost certainly feature at least some of the original cast returning (although no deals are yet in place). Universal has hired Harold and Kumar writers, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg, to script a new take on the franchise.
There’s no news on what story the movie will have, although as the first three took us from high school to Jim and Michelle getting married, it might be kind of interesting to catch up with the characters in their late 20s/early 30s and see where life has taken them. To be honest, as long as Stifler’s back, I don’t think most fans will care about the rest of the movie.