Urban escapism films will always hold a special place in the cultural zeitgeist. Movies that reimagine the humdrum of life with an exciting twist, usually featuring a normal kid who discovers that a more interesting and wonderful world has always existed just out of sight. From the literal magic of Harry Potter to the grand mythology of Percy Jackson to the exotic-animal slavery of Pokémon, many franchises have found long-term success by providing a creative escape to bored pre-teens. But the greatest of all these films has never been given a sequel: Sky High.

Released in 2005, Sky High has a simple but powerful premise: superheroes exist, and they learn how to fight crime at a school in the sky. When a teenager exhibits superpowers, they’re enrolled in this school, where they’re sorted into the ‘Hero’ branch if their power is good (acid spit, super strength etc.) or the ‘Sidekick’ branch if their power really isn’t  (glowing in the dark, transforming into a hamster etc.).

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The protagonist of the film is Will Stronghold (Michael Angarano), son of the legendary heroes ‘The Commander’ (Kurt Russell) and ‘Jetstream’ (Kelly Preston). With his parents being so revered for their super prowess, Will is expected to continue the family legacy as the next great hero… except he doesn’t have any powers of his own. Placed in the ‘Sidekick’ branch with other “dweebs” (yeah, all the jocks are heroes, and all the dorks are sidekicks), he has to contend with not being the person his parents and school thought him to be. Indeed, much of the narrative is dedicated to Will being the only non-powered student at Sky High, with him learning to disregard expectations placed upon him and become his own (super-) man. It’s a typical coming-of-age trope, but with a clever metaphorical subversion.

But the real fun of the film is how camp it all is – it’s like someone is trying to make the exact opposite of a Zack Snyder film. With bright colors, over the top characters, and witty wisecracks, it’s as if the panels of a late 60s comic book have come to life. Just watch this scene, where Will and his peers are first sorted into their categories, and see how unapologetically camp it all is:

Also apparent in this clip is the sheer excellence of the film’s casting. Not only does Sky High feature Russell and Preston, but also Bruce Campbell, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jim Rash (the Dean from Community), Nicholas Braun (Cousin Greg from Succession), and even SpongeBob himself, Tom Kenny. With a cast this strong, the comedy in the film is top-notch, balancing slapstick with humorous asides (using a superpower? “that’s so fascist”). Also, at one point in the film, the teenagers get into a cage deathmatch and the teachers support it; they actively cheer on the students fighting – it’s a wild ride.

So, at a time where reboots are aplenty and even the most mediocre comic book movies are guaranteed at least a handful of sequels, isn’t it time that Sky High is given a second round?  What’s even more tantalizing is that rumors of a sequel have been circulating since 2016. For four years now, the possibility of revisiting these characters has been floated but to little effect: director Mike Mitchell has said the plans have always been there, but due to the original film’s subpar box-office performance, nothing is for certain.

To make matters worse, the pitch for this subsequent film sounds so good – it would have been called Save U (as in Save University) and would have featured the characters graduating high school and attending college. Imagine 22 Jump Street meets My Hero Academia meets the MCU, what’s not to love?

Simply put, Sky High deserves a sequel. Yes, this could be nostalgia talking, but the film offers such unbridled joy, it may be the only thing to defeat the pessimism of 2020. From the fun concept to the light-hearted tone to the stacked cast to the weirdly effective mesh of two genres, Sky High is urban escapism done right, and today’s pre-teens deserve to relive all the delight of the superhero school in the clouds.

Still not convinced? Here’s that cage death match:

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