Hey, '90s kids: this one's for you. Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle star Jack Black revealed that the upcoming sequel to the 1995 original will honor the late actor Robin Williams, who took his own life in August 2014 at the age of 63. The tribute to Williams' character Alan Parrish, who as a child becomes trapped inside a board game to be unleashed 25 years later (along with a whole lot of mayhem), sounds absolutely perfect.
"We’re exploring this jungle and trying to conquer the game; it’s life or death," Black told The Hollywood Reporter. "But while we’re there, we find clues left behind by [Williams’ character Alan Parrish]. He built up a full-blown jungle house, similar to a Swiss Family Robinson situation." He added, "It’s like he’s there helping us without actually being there."
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Last year, Black's co-star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson vowed in a sweet Instagram post that he would honor Williams' name and character in the new film. "An important thing that I want to be honest and bring up is Robin Williams," he wrote. "The love and respect I have for this man is boundless. You have my word, we will honor his name and the character of 'Alan Parrish' will stand alone and be forever immortalized in the world of JUMANJI in an earnest and cool way. I have an idea of what to do and I think his family will be proud." (We don't know if Johnson's idea was the one actually executed.)
The actor also shared a touching anecdote about the first time he met the man whose shoes he would one day fill. "I also think Robin is somewhere lookin' down and laughing, remembering the first time we met backstage and I (for the first time ever) was a star struck bumbling idiot that couldn't even get my words out. Idiot," Johnson wrote. "He literally calmed me down w/ that smile and laugh. But that's for another fun story down the road."
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle hits theaters on Dec. 20 2017.