Ed Helms to star as Rusty Griswold in 'Vacation' reboot

Ed Helms' characters' never catch a break, and that bad luck is likely to continue since Helms has signed on to play Clark Griswold's grown son, Rusty, in the reboot of the Vacation franchise. The casting of Helms even makes sense, age-wise. Helms is 38 and Chevy Chase, who played the original patriarch, is 68, so it's plausible they could be father and son. In this version, Rusty will continue the family tradition and take his own kids on a road trip vacation.

It's been 15 years since the underperforming Vegas Vacation released and helped put an end to the franchise. I actually loved this one as a kid, and it's ten times funnier than 1985's European Vacation, which mainly trades on "Ugly American" tropes. The series classics, of course, are the original 1983 Vacation, which centered on a road trip to Wally World, and 1989's Christmas Vacation, which has that holiday movie blessing of showing up on TV every December as seasonal fare.

The thing that differentiated the Vacation series was that it had a heart. Clark wanted to spend time with his family and make them have "the best time ever," but bad luck and over-ambition usually got in the way. I hope Rusty has an iteration of his father's character, and that writer/directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein (Horrible Bosses) don't try to pull a 180 and make him the stereotypical Blackberry-addicted dad more prevalent today. The earnestness is key.

Helms' star image is right-on for the Vacation project. His characters often start out earnest, naive, and striving ("The Office"). In his films (The Hangover, Cedar Rapids), the characters go a step further, partying and misbehaving and then suffering way more consequences than the average Joe. That includes getting tattooed, losing teeth, or discovering you've just turned your life into shambles. Helms' comedic image is quite similar--but significantly different--than Steve Carell's, his co-star on "The Office." I wouldn't be surprised if Carell was also considered for the role. Carell tends to play timid characters who quietly come into their own (40-Year-Old Virgin, Crazy Stupid Love, and Seeking a Friend at the End of the World). If you were to have both Helms and Carell re-enact the scene in Christmas Vacation where Clark installs Christmas lights, to much frustration and some (pretty dangerous) physical comedy, I would pick Helms. If all goes according to schedule, filming for the comedy will begin next spring.

 

The Griswolds schedule another family vacation

I grew up with the Griswolds. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is that film everyone ends up watching whenever it's on television. Lines from Vegas Vacation were quoted with some regularity in my family, especially when we were around dams (a memorable bit). The original, when the family goes to Walley World (a.k.a. Disneyland) was also a hit. The movies' humor may have relied a little too much on the audience delighting in the father's misery, but it also felt daring. The original, penned by John Hughes of Home Alone and Breakfast Club fame, ends with the entire family discovering Walley World is closed, an ending that felt risky in its sadness. The European one was the only one no one seemed to like. I think it's missing a bit of the "common man" aspect, since not many families regularly vacation in Europe. Then it tried to make up for it with too many "Ugly American" bits that were just embarrassing.

While normally I don't like it when Hollywood remakes a perfectly good thing, I'm happy to hear that the writers of Horrible Bosses plan to script and direct a remake of National Lampoon's family vacation. This is a series with a unique sensibility and memorable characters that could easily entertain another generation. Writers John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein plan to center the movie on grown-up Rusty, who takes his own family on vacation. I sincerely hope Chevy Chase, the original patriarch, signs on for a cameo. And that his country bumpkin Cousin Eddie (played by Randy Quaid) also makes an appearance. The movie just wouldn't seem right without these two characters around to pass the baton.

One question is pressing on my mind: Where will Rusty take his family? Will his character return to Walley World? Or will the writers come up with another quintessentially American place to take a vacation? In 2013, we may find out.