Dwayne Johnson teased earlier in the week that casting announcements for Sony Pictures’ Jumanji reboot were imminent and sure enough, The Wrap is reporting that Goosebumps and Kung Fu Panda star Jack Black is in negotiations to land a role in Jake Kasdan’s (Bad Teacher, Sex Tape) long-rumored reboot.
Details of Black’s role are being kept under lock and key for now, but Dwayne Johnson did hint that the adventure flick – set to be based once again on Chris Van Allsburg’s inimitable 1981 novel – will revolve around a cast of five characters, as opposed to the trio that stole hearts back in 1995.
As a matter of fact, in ensuring fans are kept in the loop via Instagram, Johnson himself revealed that Sony’s Jumanji will commemorate the late, great Robin Williams in some shape or form, who rolled the dice as Alan Parrish all those years ago.
Per Instagram:
“You have my word, we will honor his name and the character of “Alan Parrish” will stand alone and be forever immortalized in the world of JUMANJI in an earnest and cool way. I have an idea of what to do and I think his family will be proud.”
Simmering on the brink of production for years, Jumanji was first offered a new lease of life when Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner were drafted in to rewrite the script, one based on a treatment by the original writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. It’s eyeing a tentpole summer release on July 28, 2017, and currently boasts Dwayne Johnson along with his Central Intelligence co-star Kevin Hart and, potentially, Jack Black.