The first footage has been released of Paramount’s upcoming reboot of the much-loved Naked Gun series of spoof police movies. The new film stars Liam Neeson has Frank Drebin Jr – revealed to be the son of Leslie Nielsen’s bumbling detective from the original films.

The trailer introduces him a considerably slicker operator to his late father, disabling a baddie in a schoolgirl disguise with a sharpened lollipop. He is then seen tearfully addressing a photograph of Drebin Snr, as offspring of Captain Ed Hocken (George Kennedy) and, more controversially, Officer Nordberg (OJ Simpson) are seen following suit.

Leslie Nielsen: the doyen of deadpan

Simpson died last year, as did Jim Abrahams, one of the co-creators of the original series, while Kennedy died in 2016 and Nielsen in 2010.

The new film is directed by Akiva Schaffer and produced by Ted’s Seth Macfarlane. Also starring are Pamela Anderson and Danny Huston.

Neeson, 72, was nominated for an Oscar for his role in 1993’s Schindler’s List, and found a second wind as an actor in action films, including the Taken series (2008-2014). Despite suggests he might hang up his holster, Neeson has continued to star in straight action movies, the most recent being 2024’s Absolution.

As well as being critically acclaimed, the three original movies were substantial commercial hits, making $166m at the box office and enjoying a healthy afterlife on home entertainment and streaming.