A lot has changed in the nearly quarter of a century since Dumb and Dumber’s 1994 release. Jim Carrey, for instance, has studiously worked at erasing years of unshakeable goodwill with a never-ending self-serious phase that runs from goofy political protest paintings to the aimless philosophizing that fills his interviews in recent films like the Man On The Moon documentary, Jim & Andy. Jeff Daniels, on the other hand, has just sort of been plugging away, starring in movie and TV dramas and likely vowing not to answer a Farrelly brothers call again after the disaster of 2014's Dumb and Dumber To.
Considering the distance between their past and present, it was a bit surprising then to see an impromptu Dumb and Dumber reunion form during a recent Conan episode. While promoting his latest project—the distinctly unfunny TV adaptation of Lawrence Wright’s 9/11-focused The Looming Tower—Daniels was unexpectedly joined by Carrey. Dancing his way out onto the set, the duo got right back to old tricks, that irascible ol’ Carrey slipping in a Lloyd Christmas-style gag about the real-life Harry Dunne now starring in the supposed comedy series “Loony Tower.”
Aside from the expected joking and general shenanigans that follow the modern Jim Carrey everywhere he goes (except, unfortunately, his latest movies), the interview provides a nice look back at the wild mid-’90s period when Carrey was a comic megastar and we all discovered that Jeff Daniels was his perfect counterpart.
There’s a genuine warmth to the reunion, Daniels and Carrey hugging and complimenting each other and just generally conjuring up the image of a Dumb and Dumber sequel that actually takes advantage of their natural chemistry. Despite how incredibly unlikely the prospect of this is, it never hurts to dream. After all, we’re sure the Crash Test Dummies are more than available to write up another original song for its theme.
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