Clerks made its debut during the Sundance Film Festival, and it quickly gained attention from the audience. Clerks depicted the frustration and skepticism of typical adults striving for a better future compared to their kins. Now in 2022, a full 28 years later, ComicBook.com reports we’ll get the third installment to the franchise.
Kevin Smith announced that filming on Clerks 3 had officially wrapped in August, and as this serves as another sequel to his very first movie, it's a bit of a full-circle moment for him. The project is in the works at Lionsgate, and it seems Smith has been hard at work trimming the film down for its 2022 release date. "We are down to 1 hour 34 minutes. I have the titles in the opening sequence now, it was almost like a music video until now," Smith stated on the latest episode of Fatman Beyond Live.
Smith assumes Lionsgate will release Clerks III in mid-to-late 2022. “It's gonna be a minute before the rest of the world gets to see it. Clearly, it ain't gonna be out in 2021," he said. "Somewhere between mid-to-late 2022, I assume. I know nothing, I'm just assuming, because we'll be done by then.”
This release sparks excitement for longtime fans of Smith. The filmmaker started his career with the original Clerks in 1994, basing the black-and-white feature on his actual job as a clerk at the Quick Stop convenience store in Leonardo, New Jersey. In addition to writing and directing, Smith played Silent Bob with best friend Jay Mewes playing his stoner buddy Jay. The movie also starred Brian O'Halloran and Jeff Anderson as the titular clerks.
In 2006, Clerks II was released and added stars Rosario Dawson, and Trevor Fehrman. Kevin Smith had hoped to make a third installment for years, but it wasn't until August when cameras finally started rolling on the project. The new movie will follow Randal (Jeff Anderson) and Dante (Brian O'Halloran) making a movie at the Quick Stop about their lives as clerks, echoing what Smith had done in real life. Smith, Jay Mewes, Marilyn Ghigliotti, Dawson, and Fehrman also return. According to Smith, Clerks III will arrive sometime in 2022.