Movies

'Black Dynamite' Sequel Is The Western Parody 'Outlaw Johnny Black'

outlaw johnny black
By Hoai-Tran Bui/

Listen up suckas, a Black Dynamite sequel is on its way. But here's the catch: it won't exactly feature Black Dynamite.

Black Dynamite himself, Michael Jai White, announced that the next film he's starring in is called Outlaw Johnny Black, a gun-slinging Western comedy that will act as a semi-sequel to Black Dynamite. And there's already a teaser out for it.

Fans have been eager for a sequel to Black Dynamite ever since the hysterical send-up of the blaxploitation genre hit theaters in 2009, and star Michael Jai White has been just as keen to return to the role of the kung fu-fighting sex machine. A few weeks ago, the star created a commotion with a cryptic tweet claiming "Black is Back," stirring up rumors that a Black Dynamite sequel may finally be happening.

White confirmed that the next film he'll be starring in won't be titled Black Dynamite 2, but it will be a thematic sequel to the blaxploitation comedy, this time taking on black Westerns. The movie will be titled Outlaw Johnny Black.

The announcement came after White tweeted a teaser for the film in late January, featuring grainy footage of a Western shoot-out and an announcement that invited viewers to "Join us in 2018." The teaser comes via White's Jaigantic Studios.

We don't have too many details on what Outlaw Johnny Black will entail. A few years ago, White said he wanted to make a movie that was a cross between Blazing Saddles and Buck & Preacher. It's not an unusual next step for White's Black Dynamite franchise, which he hoped to turn into a trilogy in the vein of the Monty Python comedy classics, The Holy Grail, Life of Brian, and The Meaning of Life. Each movie in this trilogy will presumably pay homage to a different corner of the blaxploitation genre that swept through Hollywood in the 1970s — Black Dynamite to the classic urban blaxploitation film, and now Outlaw Johnny Black to the blaxploitation Western, which has seen a sort-of revival thanks to Quentin Tarantino's Djanjo Unchained.

Scott Sanders' 2009 Black Dynamite was a hilarious tribute to and parody of classic low-budget blaxploitation movies, following a legendary Vietnam War veteran and former CIA officer as he vows to clean up the streets after the death of his brother. It's jam-packed with references to '70s films, as well as irreverent asides and steamy sexcapades, and remains one of the best comedies of the past decade.Black Dynamite has since become an Adult Swim animated series, but White told Crave Online in 2012 that he and co-writer Byron Minns always intended it to be a film franchise:

"What Byron [Minns] and I always intended is we always thought from the beginning of a trilogy, Black Dynamite being one of a trilogy that would occur in that time period that starred essentially the same cast. We have some really funny ideas of other movies that are in that real vibrant time period. We're trying to decide which would be the next step to do in that trilogy."

It's uncertain what the Outlaw Johnny Black teaser means by "join us in 2018" — Is the movie already hitting theaters this year? Starting production? Launching a crowdfunding campaign? — but stay tuned for more details on the film.

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