Contains spoilers for “The Naked Gun” (2025)
There are lots of celebrity cameos in “The Naked Gun,” but the very best one is a blink-and-you-miss-it tribute to Microsoft’s past. Lieutenant Frank Drebin Jr. (Liam Neeson) struggles with his windshield after being trapped in a state-of-the-art police car made by the evil billionaire Richard Cane (Danny Huston).
While the control panel glitches out, Clippy — Microsoft’s infamously helpful Office Assistant avatar — appears on the screen and asks Frank if he wants help. He may need it, but he doesn’t want anything Clippy can provide and his car troubles continue until he finally manages to free himself. Clippy itself, a rudimentary form of artificial intelligence meant to interface with users of various Microsoft programs, was included with Windows from 1996 through 2004, despite constant complaints that it was distracting and annoying.
But that’s just one example of Frank having terrible troubles with technology throughout the movie. Maybe he’s a bit like his father, who tended to have trouble with cars, guns and even supermarket bags. It may be inherited, but with the changing times, Frank Jr.’s struggles are completely unique.
Frank Drebin Jr. has lousy luck with modern technology
Frank Drebin Jr. has a major problem with technology throughout “The Naked Gun” — he repeatedly breaks mobile phones to prevent himself from being tracked, a gag that escalates until he cracks the landline phone of Beth (Pamela Anderson), his girlfriend. When he tries to view secret blackmail files hidden within Richard Cane’s surveillance equipment at the club, he ends up having to deal with digital advertisements first. And it’s impossible to forget the moment where his dash and body cams betray his terrible addiction to chili dogs, which soon have him misappropriating his gun and identity as a police officer to access a bathroom.
It’s not just complex digital issues that plague Frank Jr.; he’s horrible at driving a car, shoots multiple people accidentally, and even manages to flunk doing simple things like opening doors or getting a cup of coffee. That’s pure Drebin intellect at work — he’s great at a handful of things, and one of those happens to be violently fighting crime. Successfully operating an inhaler? Not so much.