You Killed Five Actors!: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About The Naked Gun

As Frank Drebin, Leslie Nielsen is comedy gold. He brings the funny in the Naked Gun films, which had their own hilarious journey to the big screen.

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A few years after the way-ahead-of-its-time procedural spoof Police Squad! was cancelled for the dumbest reason in TV history (shockingly, audiences had to pay attention to the jokes to understand them), the comedy dream team of Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker dusted off the Frank Drebin character and brought him to the big screen in The Naked Gun.

Thanks to a virtually unparalleled rapid-fire gag rate and the godlike comic abilities of its legendary star Leslie Nielsen, The Naked Gun is one of the funniest movies of all time. Here are 10 fascinating details from the making of this hilarious comedy.

10 Bo Derek Was Considered For The Role Of Jane

The love interest in The Naked Gun, Jane, was ultimately played by Priscilla Presley. She turned out to be the perfect choice for the character and played her throughout the whole Naked Gun trilogy.

But before Presley landed the role, the producers considered casting Bo Derek as Jane. After her breakthrough in the sex comedy 10, Derek starred in a string of critically panned movies directed by her husband, John Derek.

9 Mel Brooks Suggested One Of The Movie’s Most Memorable Slapstick Gags

When Frank is disguised as an umpire at the baseball game, the batter swings the bat back and hits Frank in the face with it. This gag was suggested by Mel Brooks, a contemporary of the Zuckers and their closest rival for the title of world’s greatest spoof filmmaker.

8 The Naked Gun Wasn’t The Only 1988 Comedy In Which A Villain Was Run Over By A Steamroller

At the end of The Naked Gun, when the villainous Vincent Ludwig falls off the side of the baseball stadium, he gets run over by a truck, then he gets run over by a steamroller, then he gets trampled by a marching band.

But he wasn’t the only villain from a 1988 comedy to get run over by a steamroller. The baddies in A Fish Called Wanda and the semi-animated Who Framed Roger Rabbit? also got flattened by steamrollers.

7 Ricardo Montalbán Was Cast Based On His Performance As Khan

The producers of The Naked Gun decided to cast Mexican actor Ricardo Montalbán as their German villain Vincent Ludwig after seeing his performance as another villain.

Montalbán had previously played the title character in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and has been praised as one of the greatest villains in Trek history.

6 The Angels Game Was Filmed At Dodger Stadium

The climactic set piece in The Naked Gun takes place at an Angels game. However, the scene was actually shot at Dodger Stadium, which the Angels haven’t called home since 1965.

5 The Filmmakers Chose The Title Because It Promised More Than It Could Deliver

Although The Naked Gun is based on Police Squad!, the studio wanted the filmmakers to come up with a new title to avoid confusion with the Police Academy franchise, with “From the Files of Police Squad!” tagged on as a subtitle.

Out of a list of about 20 potential titles, the filmmakers chose The Naked Gun because, according to David Zucker, it promised more than the movie could possibly deliver.

4 Ludwig’s Secretary Is Played By The Zuckers’ Mom

There are a few high-profile cameos in The Naked Gun, from Weird Al’s brief appearance as himself at the airport to the many baseball players and umpires who can be spotted at the Angels game.

On top of the famous faces that crop up, there’s another, less recognizable cameo appearance. Vincent Ludwig’s secretary Dominique is played by Charlotte Zucker, the mother of the Zucker brothers.

3 The Studio Insisted On Casting An Oscar Winner In The Movie

The studio pressured the producers of The Naked Gun to give a role to an Oscar winner to boost the movie’s profile. This is how George Kennedy ended up being cast as Ed.

Kennedy had been lobbying for the role for months, as he’d been miffed at the Zuckers for passing him up for Airplane! (in which he would’ve parodied himself) and wanted to work with them.

2 Devout Catholic Ricardo Montalbán Had A Blasphemous Joke Removed

Based on the quick-fire gag rate of the finished product, it’s hard to imagine that the script for The Naked Gun could fit any more jokes. But there was one more joke in the original script that got cut.

Initially, the hospital was called “Our Lady Who Never Got the Pickle.” However, as a devout Catholic, Ricardo Montalbán was offended by the joke and politely asked the filmmakers to remove it. They complied.

1 A Reboot Has Been In Development Hell For Years

For years, a Naked Gun reboot centered around Frank Drebin’s son (or, depending on the report you read, a totally unrelated bumbling cop named Frank Drebin who would keep specifying, “No relation,” as a running gag) has been stuck in development hell.

Ed Helms was tapped to take over as the franchise lead, as he did with the Vacation reboot, but David Zucker only wants a reboot to get made if the producers cast actors with no comedy experience – a technique that worked beautifully for the deadpan absurdism of Airplane!.

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