One of the most influential and quotable modern comedies is still 2007’s Superbad. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s semi-autobiographical coming-of-age movie may have been one of their first collaborations, but it has stood the test of time. And when a movie reaches this status, there’s an obvious question that always makes its way to the filmmakers: will there ever be a sequel?
Here’s what Seth Rogen recently had to say about the prospect of making a Superbad 2:
I think of all the movies we've ever made, Superbad is the one I'd 100 percent probably never touch. Honestly, I don't think it requires improvement or anything to be built upon it. I'm unbelievably proud of it, it really holds up - people still watch it, high school kids come up to me telling me that they watched it for the first time and how they loved it. It's worked its way into being viewed as one of the better high school movies that's out there. I'm so terrified of subtracting from it in any way with a bad sequel or spin-off that I'd never do it. I have so few actual good accomplishments that I'm horrified to fuck with the ones I have [laughs].
Now that’s high praise from the writer of Superbad. Seth Rogen told LADBible that he doesn’t want to make another Superbad movie because he doesn’t believe there’s more story to tell and he’s afraid he’d mess up the legacy it has built over the past thirteen years. It is amazing to hear Seth Rogen’s film is still making an impact on teens years later. It’s sure to cement its place in the high school movie hall of fame.
Speaking to Seth Rogen’s point about its continued prominence on young people, last year a 20-year-old got caught flashing a fake Hawaii ID with the name “McLovin” on it, along with the same birthdate Superbad’s Fogell had on his too. Rogen saw it and simply commented with “My work here is done.” Olivia Wilde’s Booksmart is certainly Gen-Z’s own update on the concept.
Superbad follows Jonah Hill's Seth and Michael Cera's Evan as they approach the end of their high school careers. The codependent friends go partying together in an attempt to lose their virginities. Along the way, they meet Rogen and Bill Hader’s cop characters, and an up-and-coming Emma Stone and Dave Franco as high school students.
If Superbad 2 was to remain autobiographical, Seth and Evan would be successful filmmakers, and we already know that story. Plus, the pair must have injected themselves in some way in their many other films that have come out since Superbad. It would be fun to see Michael Cera, Jonah Hill and the gang reunite for a high school reunion of some sort though.
On CinemaBlend’s podcast ReelBlend, the hosts recently spoke Judd Apatow, who produced the movie early in his career too. You can listen to Apatow talk about Superbad along with The King of Staten Island and his other famous comedies in the new episode. Seth Rogen’s latest movie is An American Pickle, which is available to stream on HBO Max.
