Rick Moranis Returns from 24-Year Acting Hiatus to Star in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Reboot
Rick Moranis is finally stepping back into the spotlight — and it’s for one of his most iconic roles.
The actor, who last appeared on the big screen in 1996’s Big Bully, is returning for the reboot of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The new filmed is titled Shrunk and will directed by the original’s helmer Joe Johnston. Moranis played scientist Wayne Szalinski in the 1989 Disney classic and its 1992 sequel Honey, I Blew Up the Kid. (He also appeared as Wayne in 1997’s direct-to-video sequel Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves.)
The reboot will take place decades after the first, with Frozen‘s Josh Gad starring as Wayne’s grown-up son.
Gad tweeted about the news, expressing how happy he was to see Moranis back on screen — and starring with him.
“To say it is a dream come true to once again see #RickMoranis on the big screen is the understatement of the decade. But to say, I get an up seat view of him returning to play one of his most iconic roles is the understatement of the Century. Welcome back hero!” Gad wrote.
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The first movie followed as Wayne accidentally shrunk his young kids and their neighbors. The group of kids battle the seemingly innocuous elements in the backyard as they struggle to make it back into the house so that Wayne can turn them back.
The new movie is set to recreate the premise, with Gad’s Nick Szalinski accidentally shrinking his own kids, setting up the new story.
This is the first on-screen role for Moranis in 24 years after he decided to take a step back following his wife Ann Belsky’s tragic death.
The actor lost his wife, a costume designer, in February 1991 to breast cancer, with whom he had two children. Moranis slowly left public life to focus on being a single father, but he’s never retired from the business, as he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2015.
“I took a break, which turned into a longer break,” he told THR at the time. “But I’m interested in anything that I would find interesting. I still get the occasional query about a film or television role and as soon as one comes along that piques my interest.”
RELATED: Why Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Star Rick Moranis Left the Spotlight: I Have ‘No Regrets’
His return comes months before Ghostbusters: Afterlife hits theaters, another franchise in which Moranis plays a fan-favorite character. But unlike Shrunk, Moranis won’t be returning for this summer’s fresh take on the story.
A quote from his 2015 interview might explain his absence, as he also turned down appearing in 2016’s female-driven Ghostbusters reboot, which included his former costars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Sigourney Weaver. All three return for Afterlife, as does Ernie Hudson.
“I wish them well,” he told the publication of the 2016 movie. “I hope it’s terrific. But it just makes no sense to me. Why would I do just one day of shooting on something I did 30 years ago?”
While Moranis left Hollywood to focus on being present for his children, he didn’t express regret at his decision.
“I was working with really interesting people, wonderful people,” he said. “I went from that to being at home with a couple of little kids, which is a very different lifestyle. But it was important to me.”
He added, “I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever. My life is wonderful.”
