Kevin Smith scraps 'Clerks III' plans, announces new 'Jay & Silent Bob' movie

Feb. 10 (UPI) -- Filmmaker Kevin Smith has revealed he is working on a new Jay & Silent Bob movie.

The writer-director posted on Instagram a photo of the first draft of his screenplay for Jay & Silent Bob Reboot on Thursday.

"This is not a drill! This is an actual image from my laptop!" Smith wrote in a lengthy message accompanying the image.

"Yes, Kids - @jayandsilentbob are coming back! Here's the story: Sadly, Clerks III can't happen (one of our four leads opted out of the flick). So I worked on a #Mallrats movie instead... which also didn't happen because it turned into a #Mallrats series. I've pitched said sequel series to 6 different networks only to find no takers thus far. Mind you, I'm not complaining: nobody gets to make EVERYTHING they wanna make in this business (do they?). And I've been lucky to make anything at all, there's so much competition out there, so many much cooler ideas from fresh folks. And besides: I had #comicbookmen and then @tuskthemovie and @yogahosers (which all came together so crazy quickly), and the podcasts and #fatmanonbatman. With all of that, how could I [expletive] about no Clerks III or Mallrats 2?"

He went on to say he has been having fun directing episodes of shows on The CW, but also longs to return to the characters he created earlier in his career.

"While I love playing with someone else's new toys on @cwtheflash and @Supergirl, I'm getting eager to play with my old toys again in the inter-connected View Askewniverse I spent the first half of my career creating," he explained. "And so all last month, I had the time of my life laughing while writing "Jay and Silent Bob Reboot" - a fun flick in which the Jersey boys have to go back to Hollywood to stop a brand new reboot of the old "Bluntman & Chronic Movie" they hated so much. It's a tongue-in-cheek, silly-ass satire that pokes fun at the movie business's recent re-do obsession, featuring an all-star cast of cameos and familiar faces! And I already met with the good folks at Miramax and they're into it, so I'm hoping we'll be shooting in the summer! Never give up, kids. You CAN do anything you want in life, so long as you're patient and malleable."

Jason Mewes and Smith appeared as lovable stoners Jay and Silent Bob in many of Smith's movies, including Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy and Dogma. 2001's Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back is the only full-length, live-action film to feature them as the main protagonists, though.