Years after Liam Neeson joked it might "finish his career", The Naked Gun reboot sets a release date

Liam Neeson in The Commuter — (Image credit: STUDIOCANAL)

The Naked Gun reboot, starring Liam Neeson and from Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, is coming in 2025 – and, yes, we’re serious.

As reported by Variety, The Naked Gun is set to release on July 18, 2025.

First announced back in 2022, Neeson is set to lead the project – a reboot of the ‘80s spoof police procedural, starring Leslie Nielsen as hapless detective Frank Drebin as he attempts to crack a case wide open armed with little more than his badge, his gun, and a script full of double entendres.

The Naked Gun series proved a huge success, spawning two sequels, 1991’s The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear and the 1994 follow-up Naked Gun 33+1⁄3: The Final Insult. The series grossed almost $500 million worldwide.

Neeson has already showcased the Leslie Nielsen-style dry wit needed for The Naked Gun, joking with People (The TV Show!) that "it’ll either finish my career or bring it in another direction. I honestly don’t know."

Neeson’s current standing as everyday action hero also stands him in good stead to show off his comedic chops in The Naked Gun. It could even put him in a similar career trajectory to Nielsen, who gained acclaim in more quote-unquote ‘serious’ films such as The Poseidon Adventure before transferring his talents to comedy.

Alongside MacFarlane and Neeson, The Naked Gun is in good hands behind the camera too. It will be helmed by The Lonely Island’s Akiva Schaffer, director of Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping and Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers.

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.