There's Still Hope for 'The Mighty Ducks 4'

Children of the '90s, rejoice: There's still hope for "The Mighty Ducks 4."

Well, sort of. Cast and crew from the kiddie classic series pumped some tentative hope into the chances for another installment while discussing the original trilogy with Time, noting that there was a concrete idea in place for a follow-up, and that some of them would definitely be on board for another skate around the ice.

Producer Jordan Kerner had the most solid vision for what such a film would entail, telling Time that he already had an elaborate story and concept in mind for a potential, darker "D4" that focused on the Ducks as adults, based on a play called "The Championship Season." It was set to feature Martin Sheen playing Gordon Bombay as an old man, and his death brings together the rest of the Ducks (Goldberg would have been played by Jim Belushi, according to Kerner), who reflect on their beloved coach and relish their childhood memories.

Here's how Kerner described it:

... [I]t was going to be not unlike 'Chariots of Fire,' the sort of look back at a moment in time when their coach came back to them and did something that changed their lives forever. So you cut from the present of the kids and they would have been all of 18 or 19, so they would have become the high school seniors ... set against this thing going on in a bar or restaurant where all the present-day guys grown up talking about what this coach meant to them. And we'd see that played out against them as 18-year-olds on the ice and Emilio playing in that and his father playing in a series of scenes where he was dying and they had to say their goodbyes. So I was looking for a really literate and emotional way for all of them to come back together again as men and to say goodbye to the man who meant so much to them. But it wasn't meant to be.

That sounds a little high-concept for a series where slapstick -- and the Flying V -- reigned supreme, though according to star Joshua Jackson, the "Ducks" films still evoke nostalgia and heartstring tugging that is very much alive and well today. Jackson told Time that he was all for "D4," and revealed that he'd like to be involved if such a flick ever materialized.

"I feel like a fourth film should happen, and if there was space for any of the original kids that come back and have a role, I would be surprised that anybody didn't want to do it," Jackson said. "The next generation should have its own version. Not that we need to come back as adults, but I hope my kids grow up and play pickup hockey and I hope that they have their own movies like my generation had those movies. In that way, yeah, of course, I'd be a part of something like that."

Charlie Conway fans hoping for another glimpse of your childhood crush favorite character, keep your fingers crossed.

[via: Time, h/t Vulture]