ClerksIs 30! Take a Look Back at Every Kevin Smith Movie Featuring Jay and Silent Bob

Mar. 15, 2025

Thirty years ago, directorKevin Smithintroduced the world to a pair of New Jersey oddballs known asJay and Silent Bobin his 1994 debut feature film,Clerks.

On the 30th anniversary ofClerks’ release, take a look back at Jay and Silent Bob’s three-decade-long journey through the Askewniverse.

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‘Clerks’ (1994)

Jay and Silent Bob first appeared in 1994’sClerks. The black-and-white indie film depicts a day in the life of Dante and Randal (Brian O’Halloran and Jeff Anderson), two New Jersey convenience store workers whose many shenanigans include dealing with the boisterous and crude Jay and his more subdued, largely nonverbal sidekick, Bob. The two characters spend the film loitering outside the shop, dealing drugs and shoplifting, before Bob breaks his silence to impart some of his signature wisdom.

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‘Mallrats’ (1995)

03of 10’Chasing Amy' (1997)Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith as Jay and Silent Bob in 1997’s ‘Chasing Amy’.MiramaxWhile its sexual politics haven’t agedsuperwell, 1997’s Independent Spirit Award-winningChasing Amyremains the most poignant entry in Smith’s Askewniverse canon. The film centers on comic book artist Holden (Ben Affleck), who falls for a queer woman, Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams), only to have his own insecurities sabotage their relationship. Jay and Silent Bob appear in a cameo, in which Holden pays them for the right to use their likenesses in his indie comics and describes what’s going on between him and Alyssa. This leads Bob to deliver his most moving monologue across all of the nine films in which he and Jay appear.

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‘Chasing Amy’ (1997)

Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith as Jay and Silent Bob in 1997’s ‘Chasing Amy’.Miramax

Miramax

While its sexual politics haven’t agedsuperwell, 1997’s Independent Spirit Award-winningChasing Amyremains the most poignant entry in Smith’s Askewniverse canon. The film centers on comic book artist Holden (Ben Affleck), who falls for a queer woman, Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams), only to have his own insecurities sabotage their relationship. Jay and Silent Bob appear in a cameo, in which Holden pays them for the right to use their likenesses in his indie comics and describes what’s going on between him and Alyssa. This leads Bob to deliver his most moving monologue across all of the nine films in which he and Jay appear.

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‘Dogma’ (1999)

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‘Clerks: The Animated Series’ (2000)

Jay and Silent Bob in 2000’s ‘Clerks: The Animated Series’.Disney/Alamy

Disney/Alamy

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‘Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back’ (2001)

In 2001, Jay and Silent Bob took center stage in Smith’s first movie built entirely around them.Jay and Silent Bob Strike Backfinds the duo revisiting several Askewniverse alumni — including O’Halloran and Anderson’s characters fromClerksand Lee’s Brodie fromMallrats— before discovering that Affleck and Lee’s characters fromChasing Amyhave sold the movie rights to their comic book alter egos “Bluntman and Chronic” toMiramax. Jay and Silent Bob then set out on a wild quest to make sure the movie never gets made.

07of 10’Clerks II' (2006)Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith as Jay and Silent Bob in 2006’s ‘Clerks II’.Darren Michaels/Weinstein Company/Kobal/ShutterstockA more direct sequel to 1994’sClerks,Clerks IIfinds O’Halloran and Anderson’s characters Dante and Randal working at a fast-food restaurant after their convenience store burns down. Fresh out of rehab and now apparently devout Christians, a sober Jay and Silent Bob continue to deal drugs outside the restaurant — as they did outside the shop in the first movie. Needless to say, hijinks ensue.

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‘Clerks II’ (2006)

Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith as Jay and Silent Bob in 2006’s ‘Clerks II’.Darren Michaels/Weinstein Company/Kobal/Shutterstock

Darren Michaels/Weinstein Company/Kobal/Shutterstock

A more direct sequel to 1994’sClerks,Clerks IIfinds O’Halloran and Anderson’s characters Dante and Randal working at a fast-food restaurant after their convenience store burns down. Fresh out of rehab and now apparently devout Christians, a sober Jay and Silent Bob continue to deal drugs outside the restaurant — as they did outside the shop in the first movie. Needless to say, hijinks ensue.

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‘Jay & Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie!’ (2013)

Jay and Silent Bob in 2013’s ‘Jay & Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie!'.SModcast Pictures/Jay Mewes/Youtube

SModcast Pictures/Jay Mewes/Youtube

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‘Jay and Silent Bob Reboot’ (2019)

Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes as Jay and Silent Bob in 2019’s ‘Jay and Silent Bob Reboot’.Kyle Kaplan/Miramax/Saban/Kobal/Shutterstock

Kyle Kaplan/Miramax/Saban/Kobal/Shutterstock

10of 10’Clerks III’ (2022)Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith as Jay and Silent Bob in 2022’s ‘Clerks III’.View Askew Productions/BondIt/Album/Alamy Stock PhotoFor thethirdClerksfilm, Smith went extra meta. The movie finds Dante and Randal (O’Halloran and Anderson), now owners of the Quick Stop convenience store, trying make a movie about their own lives. The duo cast Jay and Silent Bob to play themselves, with Bob having the novel idea to shoot the film in black-and-white — just like the originalClerks.

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‘Clerks III’ (2022)

Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith as Jay and Silent Bob in 2022’s ‘Clerks III’.View Askew Productions/BondIt/Album/Alamy Stock Photo

View Askew Productions/BondIt/Album/Alamy Stock Photo

For thethirdClerksfilm, Smith went extra meta. The movie finds Dante and Randal (O’Halloran and Anderson), now owners of the Quick Stop convenience store, trying make a movie about their own lives. The duo cast Jay and Silent Bob to play themselves, with Bob having the novel idea to shoot the film in black-and-white — just like the originalClerks.

source: people.com