Josh Gad and Mel Brooks are working on a sequel to Spaceballs for Amazon, but Spaceballs 2 will be pointless if they don’t bring back the great Rick Moranis to play Dark Helmet. While it wasn’t as well-reviewed as Blazing Saddles or Young Frankenstein, Spaceballs remains one of Brooks’ most beloved comedies. Its satire of Star Wars was considered to be outdated when the film arrived in 1987, four years after the original trilogy ended, but just as George Lucas’ space opera has endured for decades, Spaceballs remains a timeless gem.

Amazon has confirmed that Spaceballs 2 is in development with Brooks attached as a producer and Gad attached as the star. The sequel will be directed by Josh Greenbaum from a script by Benji Samit, Dan Hernandez, and Gad. It’s unclear if Spaceballs 2 will be a direct sequel to the original movie, bringing back familiar characters and storylines from the first one, or more of a spiritual sequel spoofing similar sci-fi properties. But one thing is clear: without Rick Moranis, there’s no point in making a Spaceballs 2.

Rick Moranis’ Dark Helmet Has To Be Part Of Spaceballs 2

Dark Helmet was one of the best parts of the first Spaceballs

From Bill Pullman as cocky gunslinger Lone Starr to John Candy as his half-man half-dog sidekick Barf to Brooks himself in dual roles as Yogurt and President Skroob, there are a ton of hilarious performances in the endlessly quotable Spaceballs. But one of the funniest turns in the movie is from Rick Moranis as the evil Lord Dark Helmet, a parody of Darth Vader. Dark Helmet is the short-statured, short-tempered villain of the movie whose intergalactic wrongdoings are shown to compensate for his diminutive size.

And on top of Dark Helmet being a great character and one of the best parts of the original film, Moranis is just an all-time comedy legend. From Ghostbusters to Little Shop of Horrors to Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Moranis starred in some of the funniest movies of the ‘80s. Moranis always brings something unique to a comedic ensemble and delivers some of the best lines in any movie he’s in. Spaceballs 2 would be a pointless endeavor without Moranis.

Why Rick Moranis’ Spaceballs 2 Return Is Not Guaranteed

Moranis has been semi-retired for years

While Moranis’ return would make Spaceballs 2 a lot more exciting, there’s no guarantee that he’ll actually appear in the film. Moranis has been semi-retired for years; his last acting role was in 2006 when he reprised his voice role as Rutt in Brother Bear 2. He hasn’t come back for other revivals of franchises he was a part of, like Ghostbusters. Unfortunately, it seems likely that the Spaceballs sequel won’t feature Moranis – and if that’s the case, I’m not interested.