Indeterminate plans for a reboot of the ’90s fantasy nostalgia object Jumanji, itself an adaptation of the 1981 kids’ book of the same name, have been circulating for months now. But rumors are only worth getting worked up over when they’ve got some meat to them. “There’s gonna be a new Jumanji” is not nearly as tantalizing as “Here’s who’s directing the new Jumanji,” because the second one actually gives a sort of impression of how this project could turn out. Up until today, presiding studio Sony Pictures has had trouble securing directorial talent for their newest adventure in the world of rebooting, presumably because any director they approached knows what happens to people who play the diabolical game-within-the-game and would rather not get terrorized by jungle creatures. That, however, has all changed.

Deadline reports that just in time to get started for Sony’s projected release date of December 25, Jake Kasdan has agreed to roll the dice on the new Jumanji reboot. Son of Hollywood royalty Lawrence Kasdan, Jake has had a rather spotty career that makes this new undertaking a rather intriguing wild card. Kasdan has been responsible for some truly commendable work, from his direction on various episodes of Freaks and Geeks to the helm of inspired parody Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. 

Recent years have not been so kind to Kasdan, however; he’s gotten mired in a swamp of Cameron Diaz-starring mediocrity with Sex Tape and Bad Teacher. Which way his latest, and perhaps most high-profile project to date will go has yet to be seen, but it appears that the studio are looking to organize this remake around Kasdan’s knack for broad humor. But that’s the tricky thing about broad humor: at its best, it reaches a broad audience, but when it’s not at its best, the words “lowest common denominator” enter the conversation.

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