The latest attempt to revive Anaconda skips the straight-faced reboot route, opting instead for a knowingly meta take that mixes creature-feature chaos with reflections on nostalgia and unrealized dreams.

There is a mid-credit scene.

Doug McCallister (Jack Black) and Ronald “Griff” Griffin Jr. (Paul Rudd) have been best friends since childhood, bonded by a shared affection for the 1997 creature feature Anaconda. Confronted by a creeping midlife crisis and a nagging sense of unrealized ambition, they decide to remake the film that once fueled their filmmaking dreams. Recruiting friends Kenny (Steve Zahn) and Claire (Thandiwe Newton), they head into the Amazon to bring their passion project to life. What starts as a knowingly chaotic production takes a dangerous turn when a real giant anaconda appears, blurring the line between affectionate homage and genuine survival story.

Only upon reaching Brazil do they meet snake wrangler Santiago (Selton Mello) and his own veteran performing anaconda, a snake named Heitor. With Griff having numerous scenes with Heitor, it’s no surprise that he’s on edge and ends up derailing the entire production. I’d be freaking out, too, if I were in his position. Who wouldn’t?!?

While it is not required that audiences be familiar with the original Anaconda, it helps to understand the references throughout the film’s 99-minute runtime. Thankfully, there’s nobody here choosing to be the Jon Voight of the movie—not so much in a villain kind of way, but more so about the accent.

The thing that surprises me about the new take on Anaconda is that it marks the first time Paul Rudd and Jack Black are leading a film together. Prior to this, the only film involving both actors had been Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. You wouldn’t know that they hadn’t really worked together given the chemistry of their characters. But where the film goes massively wrong is taking them out of their archetypes. Paul Rudd is better at playing the straight man. Here, it’s Jack Black in that role. You never want Jack Black playing it straight!

Unfortunately, the meta comedy is unlikely to become an instant classic in the same vein as director Tom Gormican’s previous film, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. After seeing what they were able to do with the Nicolas Cage/Pedro Pascal team-up, it’s a shock that they couldn’t quite capture the same magic here. Of course, they aren’t afraid of using the script to acknowledge that Hollywood is seemingly out of ideas and has to rely on familiar IP rather than originals.

Anaconda isn’t the first time studio films have used movies to comment on the lack of originality in Hollywood. The Phil Lord and Christopher Miller-directed 21 Jump Street offered a similar commentary through Nick Offerman’s Deputy Chief Hardy: “We’re reviving a canceled undercover police program from the ’80s and revamping it for modern times. You see the guys in charge of this stuff lack creativity and are completely out of ideas, so all they do now is recycle shit from the past and expect us all not to notice.” It’s quite ironic that Ice Cube is in both films.

Nor are they afraid to put their characters in the most ridiculous situations, bringing in Ana (Daniela Melchior) as the reluctant boat captain taking them upriver. The film even includes subplot dealing gold mining and its impact on the environment

This isn’t to say that their own take isn’t without surprises. There were some that I didn’t see coming, perhaps because I never got wind of the spoilers in question. Ice Cube had teased his own cameo ahead of the world premiere. Just don’t expect Jon Voight to be walking through the door.

Gormican and co-writer Kevin Etten had been tasked with making a straightforward reboot. The original may have developed a cult following, but I think they made a better decision. Rather than deliver an outright reboot, why not do what they do best and have some fun with it?

Anaconda isn’t about delivering a faithful reboot or reinventing a classic—it’s about enjoying the ride to some extent. Chaotic, occasionally silly, and self-aware, it leans into meta humor and absurd situations with solid chemistry from Paul Rudd and Jack Black. While it doesn’t reach the heights of Gormican’s previous work, it’s a slightly entertaining midlife-crisis-fueled adventure.

DIRECTOR: Tom Gormican
SCREENWRITERS: Tom Gormican & Kevin Etten
CAST: Jack Black, Paul Rudd, Steve Zahn, Thandiwe Newton, Daniela Melchior, Selton Mello, and Ice Cube

Sony Pictures Releasing will release Anaconda in theaters on December 25, 2025. Grade: 3/5

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