In a heartwarming video, comedian and musician Jack Black gave a sick child a performance of a song from his blockbuster movie, School of Rock. As a youngster in the 1980s, Black started his acting career by appearing in television advertisements and tiny roles. A steady increase of projects for Black during the 1990s included The X-Files, Picket Fences, Northern Exposure, Airborne, Mars Attacks!, and Enemy of the State. Black's career didn't really take off into leading man territory until his performance as an overly exuberant record store employee in the 2000 romantic comedy High Fidelity, which was directed by Stephen Frears.
School of Rock stars Black as Dewey Finn, a struggling aspiring rock musician who adopts his friend's identity to work as a substitute teacher at a famous private school. The film was written by Mike White of Orange Country and directed by Richard Linklater of Dazed and Confused. Dewey transforms his class into a rock band by teaching his students the theory and history of the genre after hearing his students playing music over the wall. Dewey also develops a new interest. School of Rock earned over $130 million at the box office and received acclaim from both critics and fans.
In a recent touching video posted by Upworthy, Black is shown serenading a fan who suffers from a rare ailment. The actor met Abraham, a 15-year-old child with Pearson syndrome, a rare mitochondrial disorder, while he was present at a TrinityKids Care fundraising event. Abraham informs Black that he adores School of Rock and that "In the End of Time" is his favourite track from the movie. Abraham is even given permission to join in as the actor starts singing the song on cue. Watch the heartfelt scene above.
School of Rock 2: Will It Happen?
Since the debut of School of Rock, many viewers have yearned for a follow-up. Black, Linklater, and White reportedly agreed to collaborate once again in 2008 for the film School of Rock 2: America Rocks. Black acknowledged that the movie probably won't be produced anytime soon, though, following four years of little progress on the project. A sequel might no longer be in the cards given the untimely passing away of actor Kevin Clark, who played drummer Freddy Jones.
If the creative team doesn't make any other statements, fans will have to make their own assumptions about what a potential School of Rock 2 would involve. The movie would probably need to introduce a new class of pupils while challenging Dewey in a unique way to avoid treading familiar ground because many of the original cast members no longer appear in any roles. The project's heavy reliance on nostalgia is just one of the numerous criticisms of a legacy sequel or remake. To appeal to today's audiences, School of Rock 2 would need to differentiate itself from its predecessor while offering a fresh take on the well-known tale.
