Things are heating up on Paramount’s high-profile Baywatch movie – and we aren’t just referring to the recent casting of Zac Efron. Taking to Twitter to welcome his new co-star, Dwayne Johnson revealed that the studio’s modernized take on the famed cadre of lifeguards will be rated R.
Promising a boisterous sense of fun matched only by the amount of baby oil, the likeable wrestler-turned-movie star addressed his legions of followers with these rather brilliant teases.
BIG NEWS: Welcoming my dude @ZacEfron to #BAYWATCH. Our movie will be big, fun and RATED R.. Like me when I drink. https://t.co/8DPMJSEG9K
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) August 10, 2015
It’s BIG. Me and bud @ZacEfron been talkin’ bout this one for a long time. And someone get my baby oil. #RatedR https://t.co/Dem85fWMBz
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) August 10, 2015
Paramount’s long-gestating Baywatch movie certainly risked stalling in the past, with numerous writers entering and exiting the project in what quickly become one of Hollywood’s longstanding revolving doors. Fast forward to today, though, and with Horrible Bosses‘ Seth Gordon behind the camera, the studio’s adaptation is finally beginning to pick up momentum.
Keeping one eye on Sony’s zany and wholly hilarious 21 Jump Street series as a reference, it’s understood that Gordon’s feature film will ditch the camp sense of humor associated with Hasselhoff and Co. and instead tread the path of a hard reset. Of course, given the history of Baywatch on the small-screen, we fully expect some of the original lifeguards to make cameo appearances in Paramount’s R-rated comedy romp.
Now that Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron have been assembled, filming is expected to get underway in the early stages of 2016, and we’ll keep you updated on all things Baywatch as Gordon’s film begins its slow-mo jog toward the cameras.