The Unbelievable Legal Loophole That Gave Kevin Smith Ownership Of Jay And Silent Bob
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Kevin Smith has always been a beacon for aspiring indie filmmakers to look toward. His feature debut, "Clerks," became the little indie darling that could, kicking off his career in impressive fashion. All eyes were on Smith and what he would do next. He leaned into his comic book nerd sensibilities and made "Mallrats," a buddy comedy that takes place, well, at a mall. Though the movie was a big disappointment in its day, it has since become a fan favorite. More than that, it also gave Smith the rights to Jay and Silent Bob, which greatly influenced his career from that point on.
An oral history published by The Ringer for the 30th anniversary of "Mallrats" revealed how Smith was able to take the characters of Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (who Smith plays himself) and take them from "Clerks," which was distributed by Miramax, over to a Universal Pictures production. It came down to some clever legal maneuvering.
"Our lawyer carved out Jay and Silent Bob," producer and longtime Smith collaborator Scott Mosier said. "I don't even think they blinked." Indeed, while the deal with Miramax for "Clerks" was being ironed out, they put in a clause that allowed for Smith to retain ownership of those characters. Per the story, Smith's memory differs slightly, but the result is the same. The lawyers determined, per the title "Clerks," that it's "about the guys inside the store, not the guys outside the store."
Thus, Jay and Silent Bob appeared in "Mallrats" and began building out the so-called View Askewniverse, a shared continuity that runs through many of Smith's films. He's made movies like "Red State" and "Tusk" that don't feature these characters; by and large, Smith has built his career on the backs of this dynamic duo.
Mallrats was the key to unlocking the View Askewniverse
Smith then went on to include Jay and Silent Bob in "Chasing Amy," which remains one of his most acclaimed movies, as well as other directorial efforts like "Dogma," not to mention "Clerks II." Eventually, Smith even put Jay and Bob front and center in "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back." That later got a sequel in the form of "Jay and Silent Bob Reboot."
The duo also had a cameo in "Scream 3." More recently, they were added as characters in "Call of Duty." It would be fair to not only refer to them as the lynchpins of the View Askewniverse, but also as pop culture icons. As Smith put it in the oral history, they can literally do anything they want with these characters, all thanks to that clever bit of legal maneuvering.
"Me and Jason Mewes have owned Jay and Silent Bob ever since. And we can put them in anything we want and stuff. That is akin to owning C-3PO and R2-D2."
As for "Mallrats," it bombed at the time of its release, making just $2.1 million at the box office against a $6 million budget. The front-and-center nerd culture was just a bit ahead of its time. Even so, it allowed Smith to build his own shared cinematic universe, which wasn't something anyone was really doing at the time. The movie has also become a true cult classic in its own right. So much so that Smith, for years, was trying to get "Mallrats 2" made. Despite its initial reception, this remains a hugely important cornerstone in Smith's filmography.