The ''True North'' trilogy is a series of

horror comedy Comedy horror, also known as horror comedy, is a literary, television, and film genre that combines elements of comedy and horror fiction. Comedy horror has been described as able to be categorized under three types: "black comedy, parody and spo ...

films written and directed by

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film ''Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co ...

. It consists of the films ''

Tusk Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. They are most commonly canine teeth, as with pigs and walruses, or, in the case of elephants, elongated incisors. Tusks share c ...

'' (2014), ''

Yoga Hosers ''Yoga Hosers'' is a 2016 American comedy horror film written and directed by Kevin Smith. It is a spin-off of Smith's 2014 horror film ''Tusk'' and stars Smith's daughter Harley Quinn Smith, Lily-Rose Depp, and her father, Johnny Depp. The seco ...

'' (2016), and the planned ''Moose Jaws''.

Films

'' is based on a story from

SModcast ''SModcast'' is a podcast featuring filmmaker Kevin Smith. The show was initially co-hosted with Smith's long-time producing partner Scott Mosier, although over the years, Mosier's appearances have been sporadic with a series of guest hosts taki ...

podcast. It stars

Michael Parks Michael Parks (born Harry Samuel Parks; April 24, 1940 – May 9, 2017) was an American singer and actor. He appeared in many films and made frequent television appearances, notably starring in the 1969–1970 series ''Then Came Bronson'', but ...

Justin Long Justin Jacob Long (born June 2, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. Long is known for his film roles, notably appearing in '' Jeepers Creepers'' (2001), ''Dodgeball'' (2004), ''Accepted'' (2006), ''Idiocracy'' (20 ...

Haley Joel Osment Haley Joel Osment (born April 10, 1988) is an American actor and voice actor. Beginning his career as a child actor, Osment's role in the comedy-drama film '' Forrest Gump'' (1994) won him a Young Artist Award. His breakthrough came with the psyc ...

Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...

and

Genesis Rodriguez Génesis Rodríguez Pérez (born July 29, 1987) is an American actress and model. She began her career playing leading roles in the Telemundo telenovelas ''Prisionera'' (2004), '' Dame Chocolate'' (2007) and '' Doña Bárbara'' (2008–2009) ...

. The film premiered at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

, before it was released on September 19, 2014, by

A24 A24 is an American independent entertainment company that specializes in film and television production, as well as film distribution. It is based in New York City. A24 was founded in 2012 by Daniel Katz, David Fenkel and John Hodges. Pr ...

. ''

'' is a spin-off of ''Tusk''. It starred

alongside his daughter

Lily-Rose Depp Lily-Rose Melody Depp (born 27 May 1999) is a French-American actress and model. Depp began her acting career with a small role in ''Tusk'' (2014), and went on to star in the period drama '' The Dancer'' (2016), in which she played Isadora Dunc ...

and Smith's daughter

Harley Quinn Smith Harley Quinn Smith (born June 26, 1999) is an American actress and musician. Smith has appeared in the film ''Tusk'' and starred in its spin-off ''Yoga Hosers'', both written and directed by her father, filmmaker Kevin Smith. She is also the bas ...

. Production began in August 2014. The film premiered at a midnight screening during the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

. Invincible Pictures acquired distribution rights to the film, and released it on September 2, 2016. ''

Moose Jaws The ''True North'' trilogy is a series of horror comedy films written and directed by Kevin Smith. It consists of the films ''Tusk'' (2014), ''Yoga Hosers'' (2016), and the planned ''Moose Jaws''. Films ''Tusk'' is based on a story from Kevin Sm ...

'' is basically "''

Jaws Jaws or Jaw may refer to: Anatomy * Jaw, an opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth ** Mandible, the lower jaw Arts, entertainment, and media * Jaws (James Bond), a character in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' and ''Moonraker'' * ...

'' with a moose". In June 2015,

Harley Morenstein Harley Morenstein (born July 20, 1985) is a Canadian actor, Internet personality, and vlogger. He co-created, produces, and hosts the YouTube show Epic Meal Time and its FYI television spin-off series Epic Meal Empire. He also runs a vlog chan ...

of ''

Epic Meal Time ''Epic Meal Time'' is a Canadian YouTube cooking show known for creating extremely high-calorie meals, generally out of meat products (with particular emphasis on bacon) and including alcohol (especially Jack Daniel's). It debuted in Octobe ...

'' confirmed he will be the lead in the film, following an appearance in the other two offerings. Also in June, Smith revealed that Harley Quinn Smith and Lily-Rose Depp will reprise their roles from ''Yoga Hosers''. In September 2015, Kevin Smith mentioned that his character Silent Bob will be eaten by the killer moose. In 2017, Smith revealed that

would reprise his role as Guy LaPointe, and that the actor suggested that his character be eaten by a moose. In January 2016, Smith confirmed that Jay and Silent Bob will appear in ''Moose Jaws'', setting the ''True North'' trilogy within the

View Askewniverse The View Askewniverse is a fictional universe created by writer/director Kevin Smith, featured in several films, comics and a television series; it is named for Smith's production company, View Askew Productions. The characters Jay and Silent Bob ...

. In February 2016, Smith stated filming on ''Moose Jaws'' would start in July 2016 in

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Smith later said filming was slated to begin in May 2016. In June 2018 during a live recording of Smith's podcast ''

Fatman on Batman ''Fatman on Batman'' is a podcast and video series in which hosts, filmmaker Kevin Smith and writer Marc Bernardin explores their geeky interests, originally focusing on the DC comic property Batman. The podcast was retitled ''Fatman Beyond'' aft ...

'', he said that he had secured funding for ''Moose Jaws''. In April 2020, while on Instagram talking about his finished first draft of ''Twilight of the Mallrats'', Smith stated he is working on a new draft of ''Moose Jaws.'' In June 2020, Smith revealed he removed Jay and Silent Bob from the latest draft of ''Moose Jaws''.

Films

Recurring cast

Reception

Critical response

References