‘Honey, I Shrunk the Kids’ Director Joe Johnston, Josh Gad in Talks for Reboot

Thirty years after Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Joe Johnston is going back to the property that made his name as a director. Johnston is in early talks to helm a reboot of the franchise for Disney, with Josh Gad circling to star, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

Gad has been chasing a Honey, I Shrunk the Kids reboot for some time, with his involvement first being reported by Slash Film in May after he brought the idea to Disney. If the studio greenlights the film, it sees the project as a theatrical vehicle rather than a Disney+ movie.

David Hoberman is producing the reboot, with Todd Rosenberg penning the script.

Rick Moranis starred in the 1989 original as a scientist whose children stumble upon one of his experiments in their family’s home and end up shrinking themselves down to the size of bugs. Gad would play the adult version of the son of Wayne Szalinski, the scientist from the first movie.

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids spawned a 1992 theatrical sequel, Honey, I Blew Up the Kid, as well as a straight-to-DVD continuation, 1997’s Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves. The reboot marks Johnston’s first time being involved with the franchise since the original pic. 

Gad is coming off Frozen 2 for Disney, while Johnston last shared a directing credit on the studio’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms after he came aboard to oversee reshoots.

Johnston is repped by Paradigm. Gad is repped by WME. 

Variety first reported Johnston’s involvement in the reboot.

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