The time is meow.
“Super Troopers 2” is in the works — or will be as soon as fundraising has finished, which looks like it could be this week.
Broken Lizard Industries — the comedy troupe that produced cult comedy hit films in the 2000s such as “Super Troopers” and “Beerfest,” announced Tuesday it had secured distribution rights for a sequel to perhaps its most-beloved film but needed to raise money for the budget.
“The script is written and we’re getting all antsy in our pantsy to start shooting … [but] we need to fund the movie ourselves,” a statement from the company reads. The group turned to crowdsourcing to raise the funds and it’s proven to be a wise decision.
Setting a goal of $2 million as “the bare minimum we’ll need to get into production,” Broken Lizard had already raised about $1.6 million in 20 hours since the funding initiative launched at IndieGoGo.com.
Fundraising options start at $10, which will get the donor a digital script of “Super Troopers 2” and a mention on the group’s website. The highest donation prize — set at $35,000 — allowed the donor to keep a patrol car used during filming; that prize was sold out as of Wednesday at 9 a.m.
Released in 2001, the original “Super Troopers” followed a group of Vermont state troopers with a penchant for pranking one another and wreaking havoc on the job. It was made for a budget of about $3 million and collected nearly $18.5 million at the U.S. box office after debuting at the Sundance Film Festival.
According to the company, if the film never gets made, donors will receive partial refunds only for perks that it isn’t able to produce — such as DVDs and Fandango movie tickets.
Broken Lizard hasn’t made a feature film since 2009, when “The Slammin’ Salmon” made just more than $60,000 on a limited theatrical release.
For more, see this Newsy video report on the fundraising efforts:
Clint Davis is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @MrClintDavis.
