After 20 years, a new generation discovers the crazy trip that Harold and Kumar go to White Castle…including the children of star John Cho.
The actor said his teenage son had a “pretty good feeling” after watching the stoner comedy for the first time as he and co-star Kal Penn recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the first installment of their trilogy.
“My 16-year-old apparently saw it,” Cho revealed this week on The Today Show. “I had to take my daughter out of the house, she’s not ready for this. But apparently he saw it and thought, ‘So, you met Ryan Reynolds?!’ That’s a pretty good revelation. Not a bad thing.”
Cho’s interview comes after Penn and producer Nathan Kahane recounted how Reynolds’ cameo as a nurse “got the film greenlit” after Penn’s performance in Van Wilder from National Lampoon (2002).
“Ryan was an incredible support during the audition for Van Wilder”, said Penn Rolling Stone. “The last callback was me and a white guy with brown makeup for the role of an Indian exchange student. He asked me, ‘How do you feel about improvisation?’ So we improvised the scene and he obviously had his fingers crossed that I would get the job. The whole production was great. At one point he casually said to me, ‘When you get your first lead role, let me know and I’ll play the supporting actor.’ As Harold and Kumar happened and we talked about cameos, I contacted Ryan and he immediately said, ‘Yeah, definitely.'”
Kal Penn and John Cho in Harold and Kumar go to White Castle (2004). (New Line/Courtesy of the Everett Collection)
Harold and Kumar go to White Castle follows the titular roommates, played by Cho and Penn, as they treat a case of cravings with a late-night trip to the titular fast-food chain, but a series of chaotic events occur along the way. The duo reunited for the sequel Harold and Kumar escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008) and A very special Harold & Kumar Christmas (2011).
Kahane said Rolling Stone They are “currently in talks” about a fourth installment, as Penn, Cho and co-writer Jon Hurwitz have all expressed their willingness to return.
“Could be,” said Cho Today the possible sequel. “I think it would be fun to do that. It’s a bit like an early 2000s movie in a lot of ways, but I’d love to see if we could do that.”
