Sony Pictures (with some help from the film's leading men) have announced a Christmas 2025 release date for their upcoming Anaconda reboot, which may officially be titled The Anaconda.
Fan-favorites Jack Black (Kung Fu Panda 4; Tropic Thunder; School of Rock) and Paul Rudd ( Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania; Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire; Avengers: Endgame) have been enlisted to headline the feature, with Daniela Melchior (Fast X; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3; The Suicide Squad) co-starring. Additional casting is currently underway.
Tom Gormican (The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent; That Awkward Moment) is directing the feature, with a screenplay he co-wrote with Kevin Etten (Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F; The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent).
In the short video, Black teases, “There’s gonna be a big [frick]ing snake, and it’s gonna rip,” while Rudd adds, “You want to get scared? You want to laugh? You want to celebrate with your friends? Or maybe you’re alone and sad and have nobody, but just want to forget about that?”
While not much else is known, it seems as though the duo are essentially confirming that the new film will be more of a horror-comedy rather than an adventure horror film like the 1997 original.
The first Anaconda, despite less-than-stellar reviews, was a pretty major success in the late '90s, grossing over $136.8 million globally on an estimated $45 million production budget and garnering even more fans on home video. It starred Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, Jon Voight, Eric Stoltz, Jonathan Hyde, and Owen Wilson; and ultimately spawned an entire franchise of films.
A sequel, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid, was released in 2004 and was another box office success, taking in $71 million on a modest $25 million production budget. The franchise then went to TV for Anaconda 3: Offspring, Anacondas: Trail of Blood, and Lake Placid vs. Anaconda.
The new Anaconda will be the franchise's first theatrical release in over twenty years and should find box office success during the holiday season, although it is slated to open in the wake of James Cameron's Avatar: Fire and Ash and Paramount/Nickelodon's The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants. However, both will be in their second weekends, so Anaconda should provide some much-needed counterprogramming for fans looking for a different kind of experience on December 25.
Watch the official announcement video below:
The announcement you've all been waiting for... 🐍 ‼️ Jack Black and Paul Rudd are making a movie! #AnacondaMovie is slithering into theatres Christmas 2025.