22 Jump Street (2014)
★★★ — 22 Jump Street (2014)
Phil Lord and Christopher Miller had already demonstrated a knack for reviving unlikely properties when they turned the original 21 Jump Street (2012) into a surprise comedy hit, and this follow-up arrived just two years later on the back of that film's strong word of mouth and healthy box office. The pair were simultaneously developing The Lego Movie (released earlier in 2014), making this something of a genuinely busy period for a duo who would go on to produce the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse franchise. Columbia Pictures backed the sequel with a $50 million budget, reasonable enough for a broad studio comedy, and it repaid that confidence several times over, grossing north of $331 million worldwide. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum both returned, with Tatum by this point firmly established as a comic performer rather than simply an action lead.
22 Jump Street is the rare sequel that improves on the original, not by much, but enough to feel like a victory lap. It doubles down on everything that worked the first time: the buddy-cop chemistry between Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, the self-aware satire of sequels, and the sheer absurdity of sending undercover cops to college… again. This time, they’re infiltrating a frat house to track down a new drug called “WhyPhy,” and yes, the plot is basically identical to 21 Jump Street. But the joke knows it’s a joke, and leans into it so hard it becomes genius. The meta-humor is relentless, montage jokes, budget gags, cameos from the studio execs demanding more franchise synergy, it’s like the film is roasting itself while still delivering the goods. And the comedy hits harder this time around. The poetry slam scene is an all-timer. One of the funniest sequences in any comedy of the 2010s. Tatum and Hill commit fully to the bit, their bromance stronger than ever, and Peter Stormare as a Swedish drug lord somehow makes zero sense and total sense at once. Ice Cube returns, angrier than ever, and steals every second he’s on screen. The action is bigger, the stakes faker, and the heart slightly warmer. Still not great cinema, but a near-perfect example of how to do a sequel right: same formula, better execution, maximum laughs. Slightly better than the first, mostly because it stops pretending to be anything else. If you liked the original, this one’s for you. Just don’t expect innovation.
Rating: ★★★ | Year: 2014 | Watched: 2025-11-05
Where to watch (UK)
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Related on Movies With Macca
More from Phil Lord: 21 Jump Street (2012)
More with Jonah Hill: 21 Jump Street (2012) · The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) · Superbad (2007)
More from the 2010s: Wonder (2017) · Beautiful Boy (2018) · The Witch (2015) · What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
More crime: A Better Tomorrow (1986) · Angst (1983) · Stolen Face (1952) · Cairo Station (1958)
More comedy: The Eagle (1925) · The General (1926) · Americana (2023) · The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
