I have a conundrum.  I want to tell you how hilarious and off-beat Phil Lord and Chris Miller's comedy sequel 22 Jump Street sounds, but the directors themselves have described their past successes as ones based off of low expectations, so they'd like us to play it down a bit.  I don't know if I can do that.  After watching Channing Tatum and Wyatt Russell shoot a delightfully bizarre meet-cute scene on the football field, while Jonah Hill stands awkwardly and uncomfortably by them in full pads, and Jimmy Tatro goes on a curse-filled rant, I can't lie to you and say you're not going to laugh your ass off.  Sorry guys.

So I'll do the next best thing and share a list of 35 Things to Know from our visit to the set in New Orleans, where sequel subversion was the theme of the day, and you could just tell that everyone on set was having a good time.  Hit the jump to get in the know.  22 Jump Street opens June 13th.

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Here's a list of "Things to Know" from our set visit to 22 Jump Street:

  • Producer Neal H. Moritz says that the sequel has a much bigger scale, but that they play with the convention that sequels have to be bigger, louder, and faster.
  • According to Moritz, the most important thing about the sequel is the relationship between Schmidt and Jenko.
  • The film is more of a subversion of sequels than a subversion of college movies.
  • 22 Jump Street will have nods to the original series and the previous film, but audiences should expect the unexpected.
  • Oren Uziel turned in the draft of the script that really made the filmmakers think they had something worth making. It centered on the developing relationship between Schmidt and Jenko.
  • Moritz says, half-jokingly, that they’ve discussed having Schmidt and Jenko as narcs in a retirement home for a future sequel.
  • The film’s ending is somewhat ambiguous as to whether it’s setting up a sequel or saying they’ll never do another one.
  • There’s no wasted action in the film; every action sequence has something to do with furthering the relationship between the characters.
  • They used a substantial second unit at the port of New Orleans – which they shut down temporarily – to shoot a major action sequence.
  • Directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller liken Schmidt and Jenko’s relationship to that of a marriage trying to sustain the magic of its first-date period over a longer time.
  • The directors really find the heart of the movie in the editing room.
  • Hill and Tatum were also writers for the film, along with Michael Bacall, Rodney Rothman, and Oren Uziel.
  • There is about five hours of footage just from shooting Rob Riggle’s scene, which has been described as “the funniest scene ever.”
  • Lord said that “the craziest person who wanted to be in the movie is going to be in the movie” but left it at that.
  • Lord and Miller say there’s more Bad Boys and Bad Boys II influence in this one, with “a lot of Michael Bay in general.”
  • Expect the humor to approach uncomfortable levels of comedy.
  • The film explores the previous college experiences of the characters and how they’d like to rewrite them.
  • Tatum has a scene in which he rides on a semi at 90mph.
  • Ice Cube was Hill’s childhood hero.
  • The intention is to make a great college film for this generation.
  • The college Schmidt and Jenko are attending is Metropolitan City State College. Their mascot is the Statesmen.
  • Some of the football players in the film played Division I ball in college.
  • Wyatt Russell’s character, Zook, started off as just a quarterback, and has devolved “into something less intelligent.”
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    Russell made unscripted home movies with his brothers when he was young.
  • Russell chose to join 22 Jump Street over an offer of a role in The Hunger Games.
  • Russell played professional hockey until an injury forced him to reconsider his career.
  • Jimmy Tatro plays the self-descried “huge douchebag in this movie,” a defensive football player named Rooster.
  • Tatro originally auditioned for the role of Zook (Russell), but was cast as Rooster instead, at which point he negotiated over the planned haircut of a red Mohawk.
  • Tatro and his team shot 10 videos in 18 days for his YouTube account in preparation for his time shooting the movie in New Orleans.
  • Though his fans think he’s a fratty douchebag, in real life he’s much more laid back.
  • Tatro had dreams of playing in the NBA until he realized, in his words, that he was 5’10” and white.
  • The production filmed at Tulane University, Loyola University, Xavier University of Louisiana, and LSU’s Tiger Stadium.  A fraternity house scene was filmed on St. Charles Avenue.
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    The walk-on day football scenes were filmed at Tad Gormley Stadium where local New Orleans high school teams play.  It was outfitted with banners and signs for the Metro City State College Statesmen.
  • Expect a chase scene in the helmet car.
  • It might not make it in the final cut of the film, but keep an eye out for Tatum and Russell’s meet-cute scene, which could end up in the deleted scenes of the eventual Blu-ray.

For more from our 22 Jump Street set visit: