Why Schaffer Almost Quit Over Naked Gun’s Snowman Montage
Sage Matthews here, reluctantly typing at 2 AM as I scroll through the latest Hollywood chaos. Of course this happened. The director of the new Naked Gun reboot, Akiva Schaffer, actually threatened to walk away from his own film to protect a scene so absurd it might just be the sign we are living through the end times of cinema logic.
On IndieWire’s Filmmaker Toolkit podcast, Schaffer admitted he nearly quit when colleagues argued that the polarizing snowman montage was too wild for the script. Test readers called it cuttable material, and even co-writer Andy Sandberg raised his hand, begging Schaffer not to delete it. Schaffer told host IndieWire that his last-ditch clause to walk away forced the studio and fellow writers to keep the sequence intact.
The montage in question finds Frank Drebin Jr., played by Liam Neeson, and Beth, portrayed by Pamela Anderson, retreating to a snowy cabin for a romantic getaway. Thanks to a magical spell book, they bring a snowman to life and then engage in a shocking threesome with the icy interloper before it turns murderous. Yes, you read that correctly. Schaffer confesses he even trimmed parts of the montage to hedge his bets against losing it altogether, but his gamble paid off when the scene tested as the No. 1 crowd-pleaser after the first screening.
Schaffer compared his creation to the beloved 1988 Naked Gun montage starring Leslie Nielsen and Priscilla Presley, where the couple runs on a beach and laughs through Platoon as Herman’s Hermits plays. He explained that they wanted a montage homage without feeling derivative. After other ideas fell flat, inspiration struck him one late night on the way to the bathroom. He sketched bullet points on his phone and texted co-writers Dan Gregor and Doug Mand. By morning they were on board.
Paloma Anderson, who flaunted the snowman scene with surprising enthusiasm during interviews with Entertainment Weekly, said the puppet costume was so elaborate it required a puppeteer wearing night-vision goggles inside. She joked that rules forbid direct communication with the performer, so filming felt like a secret mission. Anderson praised Schaffer’s insistence to preserve the sequence despite budget pressures and early doubts.
Schaffer originally co-wrote the reboot with Gregor and Mand, and his defiant stand turned the once-criticized montage into the highlight of the movie. The director chuckles that those who fought him had to “eat a lot of crow” once the snowman was officially voted best cinematic moment in test screenings. His refusal to yield apparently saved the film from a fate worse than bad box-office returns.
Another day, another reason to reconsider society. If you thought Hollywood creativity was dead, just wait until you see what comes next from this franchise revival. Keep your eyes peeled for more bizarre behind-the-scenes tales that will probably make you question why you ever clicked on Entertainment News.
Anyway, can’t wait to see how this gets worse.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and IndieWire, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post
Attribution: Photo Credit: Frank Masi (Creative Commons)
