Did you enjoy the meta comedy of Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back? Are you also a huge fan of the Clerks films? And do you love movies about making movies? If you answered “yes” to all three questions then good gravy did Kevin Smith make something just for you. The first trailer for Clerks III brings Randal and Dante back to Quick Stop Groceries to relive the ’90s. They’re older, but not necessarily any wiser or more mature. But a near brush with death results in big plans. In a story about telling a story based on a bunch of stories that happened before. Don’t worry, though, that will all make way more sense when you watch the trailer. Probably.
What might not make as much sense is the film’s very (very, very) limited theatrical release.
Would you believe us if we told you that Clerks III is even more meta than this trailer indicates? Because, despite that seeming impossible, it is. Kevin Smith wrote the film after having a heart attack in 2018. Now his near-death experience became Randal’s, just as his first movie will also serve as the inspiration for Randal’s inaugural film. (Is this the third Clerks movie or the second Inception film?)
In addition to returning stars Brian O’Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Jason Mewes, and Smith himself, Clerks II‘s Rosario Dawson is also back. The movie will also feature a ton of big name cameos, some of whom will audition for Randall’s movie. That includes Fred Armisen, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and View Askewniverse veteran Ben Affleck.
If you want to see this film about making a film, though, you better be free in mid September. Smith will tour with the movie in select market starting September 4. But Lionsgate is teaming with Fathom Events to screen Clerks III in more than 700 U.S. movie theaters for just two nights “only.” You can catch it on Tuesday, September 13 or Thursday, September 15 at 7:00 p.m. local time. And apparently, that’s it! But at least that will very limited release will include an “exclusive look behind the scenes with Kevin Smith and the cast of the film.”
You can already buy tickets for either night at Fathom Events website. And if you love meta-comedy, Clerks, films about films, and movies that are only released for two days, then you definitely will