# Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult
*Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult* is a 1994 American comedy and the third and final film of the original *Naked Gun* trilogy, starring [Leslie Nielsen](https://www.edgepedia.org/leslie-nielsen) as the bumbling Police Squad lieutenant Frank Drebin. Directed by Peter Segal for Paramount Pictures, it follows the retired Drebin as he is drawn back into police work to stop a bombing plot against the Academy Awards ceremony.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/60404) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_naked_gun_33_13_the_final_insult_1994)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | Wide United States release March 18, 1994, by Paramount Pictures; rated PG-13 for off-color humor[3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Naked-Gun-33-1-3-The-Final-Insult) |
| Director | Peter Segal, in his feature directorial debut[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/60404) • [4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1994/03/18/reviews/6710ce47-5a18-4333-9e84-907753ed2855/) |
| Writers | Pat Proft, David Zucker, and Robert LoCash[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/60404) |
| Running time | 83 minutes (AFI); the BBFC classified the cinema version at 82m 47s[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/60404) • [5](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/naked-gun-33-1-3-the-final-insult-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmdkwmzy) |
| Box office | $51,041,856 domestic on a $30,000,000 production budget; opening weekend $13,216,531[3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Naked-Gun-33-1-3-The-Final-Insult) |
| Critical reception | 66% Tomatometer from 67 reviews; 54% Popcornmeter from over 100,000 ratings[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_naked_gun_33_13_the_final_insult_1994) |
| Awards | 1995 Razzie Awards for O.J. Simpson (Worst Supporting Actor) and Anna Nicole Smith (Worst New Star); 1994 Golden Screen in Germany[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110622/awards/) |
## Spoilers
### Cast and plot
Leslie Nielsen returned as Lt. Frank Drebin, with [Priscilla Presley](https://www.edgepedia.org/priscilla-presley) as Jane Spencer, George Kennedy as Capt. Ed Hocken, and O.J. Simpson as Nordberg. [Fred Ward](https://www.edgepedia.org/fred-ward) joined the cast as the terrorist Rocco, and [Anna Nicole Smith](https://www.edgepedia.org/anna-nicole-smith), then a *Playboy* Playmate of the Year, appeared as his accomplice Tanya.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/60404) • [7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/)
The story opens with Drebin retired from the police force after marrying Jane, working as a house husband while she pursues her career. Captain Hocken calls him back into action when Rocco plans to bomb the Academy Awards ceremony, and Drebin goes undercover as [Phil Donahue](https://www.edgepedia.org/phil-donahue) to head off the attack, causing nearly as much trouble as he prevents in an Oscar show filled with over-the-top production numbers and celebrity appearances.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_naked_gun_33_13_the_final_insult_1994)
The gag load included parodies of films such as *The Untouchables*, *Jurassic Park*, *Thelma & Louise*, and *The Crying Game*, along with topical jokes about the [Tonya Harding](https://www.edgepedia.org/tonya-harding) case, and gags running through the end credits.[7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/) [Mariel Hemingway](https://www.edgepedia.org/mariel-hemingway), Elliott Gould, Raquel Welch, and [James Earl Jones](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-earl-jones) appeared as themselves in cameos, most of them uncredited.[7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/) The long cast list also included Kathleen Freeman, Ellen Greene, Vanna White, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Mary Lou Retton, Florence Henderson, Olympia Dukakis, R. Lee Ermey, Morgan Fairchild, and Pia Zadora.[5](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/naked-gun-33-1-3-the-final-insult-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmdkwmzy)
### Place in the franchise
The trilogy ran over six years: *The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!* (1988), *The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear* (1991), and *Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult* (1994).[9](https://apnews.com/article/28ee081390f0bb81e15cd1d5095f299b) The 1994 film was the lowest-rated of the three on Rotten Tomatoes, at 65 to 66 percent against 88 percent for the original and 77 percent for the first sequel.[10](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/naked-gun-rotten-tomatoes-score-rating-b2800106.html) Its domestic gross of $51.0 million also trailed the first film's $78.0 million and the second's $86.9 million.[11](https://boxofficewatch.com/franchises/the-naked-gun)
The franchise remained dormant for three decades until Paramount released a reboot, *The Naked Gun*, in July 2025, with [Liam Neeson](https://www.edgepedia.org/liam-neeson) as Frank Drebin Jr., the son of Nielsen's character. That film's 91 percent Rotten Tomatoes score set a new franchise record, surpassing all three original films.[9](https://apnews.com/article/28ee081390f0bb81e15cd1d5095f299b) • [10](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/naked-gun-rotten-tomatoes-score-rating-b2800106.html)
## Production
The film continued the series derived from the 1982 television spoof *Police Squad!*, created by [David Zucker](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-zucker), Jerry Zucker, and [Jim Abrahams](https://www.edgepedia.org/jim-abrahams). David Zucker produced and co-wrote this third installment with Pat Proft and Robert LoCash, while Robert K. Weiss, who had worked on the property since the television series, produced alongside him.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1994/03/18/reviews/6710ce47-5a18-4333-9e84-907753ed2855/) • [7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/) Executive producers were Jerry Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Gil Netter.[7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/)
Directing duties passed to [Peter Segal](https://www.edgepedia.org/peter-segal), a television veteran for whom this was a feature debut; the previous two films had been directed by David Zucker.[7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/) The main technical staff carried over from the earlier films: cinematography by Robert Stevens and music by Ira Newborn, with James R. Symons as editor and Lawrence G. Paull as production designer.[7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/) • [1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/60404)
## Release and box office
Paramount released the film wide in the United States on March 18, 1994, opening at number one with $13,216,531 from 2,361 theaters, about 25.9 percent of its eventual $51,041,856 domestic gross. The film played 2,383 theaters at its widest and averaged a 5.2-week run per theater; its domestic share was 100 percent, meaning it recorded no measurable theatrical gross outside the United States in the database's accounting.[3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Naked-Gun-33-1-3-The-Final-Insult) Against a $30,000,000 production budget, worldwide box office was reported at 1.7 times that figure.[3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Naked-Gun-33-1-3-The-Final-Insult) In Japan, UIP released the film on August 13, 1994.[7](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/)
## Reception
Critical response was mixed. On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 66% Tomatometer from 67 reviews and a 54% Popcornmeter audience score from over 100,000 ratings; the site's critics consensus says the film "can't help but be sporadically funny thanks to Leslie Nielsen's dependably solid work, but it's still a steep comedown from the original."[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_naked_gun_33_13_the_final_insult_1994) Rita Kempley of *The Washington Post* called it "still funny but energetically slapped together and occasionally inventive," opening with an intricately choreographed parody aimed at both high and low comic thresholds.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1994/03/18/reviews/6710ce47-5a18-4333-9e84-907753ed2855/) A retrospective academic account of the dumb-comedy cycle quotes a 1994 review by Edmond Grant in *The Film Journal* and characterizes the film as unremittingly stupid, "even if ... 'stupidity done right.'"[8](https://asset.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/6DCQQIQ2ZIVRF83/R/file-44f24.pdf)
At the 1995 [Golden Raspberry Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/golden-raspberry-awards), O.J. Simpson won Worst Supporting Actor and Anna Nicole Smith won Worst New Star for their roles; the film also received Germany's Golden Screen award in 1994.[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110622/awards/)
## References
1. [Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/60404)
2. [Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_naked_gun_33_13_the_final_insult_1994)
3. [Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994), The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Naked-Gun-33-1-3-The-Final-Insult)
4. [Rita Kempley, "'Naked Gun' Sequel: Parody of Virtue," The Washington Post, March 18, 1994](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1994/03/18/reviews/6710ce47-5a18-4333-9e84-907753ed2855/)
5. [Naked Gun 33 1/3 - The Final Insult, British Board of Film Classification](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/naked-gun-33-1-3-the-final-insult-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmdkwmzy)
6. [Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994) - Awards, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110622/awards/)
7. [裸の銃を持つ男 PART33 1/3 最後の侮辱：作品情報・キャスト・あらすじ, 映画.com](https://cinema.eiga.com/movie/64882/)
8. [The Best Gag in the Picture (academic thesis, University of Wisconsin)](https://asset.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/6DCQQIQ2ZIVRF83/R/file-44f24.pdf)
9. ["'Naked Gun' reboot set for 2025, with Liam Neeson to star," Associated Press, February 28, 2024](https://apnews.com/article/28ee081390f0bb81e15cd1d5095f299b)
10. [Greg Evans, "Naked Gun reboot sets new Rotten Tomatoes score for spoof comedy film franchise," The Independent, August 1, 2025](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/naked-gun-rotten-tomatoes-score-rating-b2800106.html)
11. [The Naked Gun Box Office: Every Movie Ranked, Box Office Watch](https://boxofficewatch.com/franchises/the-naked-gun)
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