Honestly, if you grew up in the mid-2000s, you probably have a weirdly specific memory of Steve Martin trying to say the word "hamburger." It was everywhere. By the time the Pink Panther 2 movie hit theaters in February 2009, the world was in a bit of a weird spot. We were in the middle of a global recession, and maybe, just maybe, people just wanted to watch a silver-haired man fall off a balcony.
The movie didn't exactly set the world on fire. Critics absolutely tore it apart. We're talking a 13% on Rotten Tomatoes. Ouch. But despite the reviews being pretty much a dumpster fire, the film has this strange staying power in the "lazy Sunday afternoon" category of cinema. It’s a sequel that nobody really asked for, yet it managed to pull together one of the most insanely overqualified casts in comedy history.
The Dream Team That Made No Sense
The premise is basically "The Avengers" but for detectives who are slightly better at their jobs than Clouseau, which isn't saying much. After a thief named "The Tornado" starts swiping world treasures—we're talking the Magna Carta and the Shroud of Turin—the French government puts together a "Dream Team."
Look at this lineup:
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- Steve Martin as the bumbling Jacques Clouseau.
- Jean Reno (the guy from Léon: The Professional!) as Ponton.
- Alfred Molina playing a British detective who thinks he's Sherlock.
- Andy Garcia as a suave Italian investigator.
- Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, literally one of the biggest stars in India.
- John Cleese replacing Kevin Kline as Dreyfus.
- Lily Tomlin showing up as a "political correctness" coach.
It’s bizarre. You’ve got Oscar winners and legends of world cinema sharing scenes with a guy whose main joke is that he can’t walk through a door without breaking it. Director Harald Zwart, who later did the Karate Kid remake, seemed to just let them riff.
What Really Happened with the Box Office?
The Pink Panther 2 movie was a bit of a reality check for the studio. The first one in 2006 actually did surprisingly well, making over $160 million worldwide. This one? Not so much.
It had a budget of around $70 million. When you factor in marketing and the cut theaters take, its $76 million global haul was a disaster. It barely made back its production costs. In France, of all places, the movie was a total flop. It lasted maybe a week in some big theaters. It turns out the French weren't super stoked about an American guy doing a cartoonish "le honk honk" accent while representing their national police force. Go figure.
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Why People Still Watch It
So, why does it keep popping up on streaming? Why do people still talk about it?
Slapstick is a universal language. You don't need a PhD to find it funny when a man accidentally dangles two children over a balcony while yelling at them in a fake accent. There's a specific scene where Clouseau's total incompetence is caught on a bank of security monitors while the "serious" detectives are interrogating a suspect (played by Jeremy Irons, because why not?). It's actually a clever bit of visual comedy.
There's also the "hamburger" factor. Steve Martin’s struggle with the English language is the backbone of these movies. Is it sophisticated? No. Is it kinda dumb? Absolutely. But for a PG-rated family movie, it hits that sweet spot where kids laugh at the falling down and adults laugh at how much Jean Reno looks like he wants to be literally anywhere else.
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The Cringe Factor: Does It Hold Up?
Watching it now in 2026, some parts are... let's say "of their time." The subplot with Lily Tomlin's character, Mrs. Berenger, is basically the movie trying to joke about how offensive Clouseau is. She’s there to teach him how to not be a walking HR nightmare. Some critics at the time felt this was just a way for the writers to have their cake and eat it too—making the "edgy" jokes while pretending to lecture the character about them.
Also, the age gap is a bit much. Steve Martin was 63 at the time, and both his love interests in the film were in their 30s. It’s a classic Hollywood trope that feels a lot more jarring today than it did seventeen years ago.
Moving Forward: The Future of the Franchise
If you're looking for a deep, soul-searching cinematic experience, the Pink Panther 2 movie is not it. But if you want to see Alfred Molina in a deerstalker hat and Andy Garcia trying to look cool while Steve Martin destroys a historical artifact, it's a solid 90 minutes of brain-off entertainment.
The franchise has been quiet since then, though there's been talk of a live-action/CGI hybrid or even an Eddie Murphy reboot. Until then, this sequel remains a weird time capsule of a budget-heavy, star-studded slapstick era that we don't really see anymore.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Watch for the Background Gags: If you re-watch it, ignore Steve Martin for a second and look at the faces of the background actors—their "please kill me" expressions are often funnier than the main stunt.
- Check the 1960s Originals: If you actually liked the mystery aspect, go back and watch Peter Sellers in A Shot in the Dark. It’s the gold standard for this character.
- Skip the DVD Extras: Most of the behind-the-scenes stuff for this particular sequel is pretty standard EPK (Electronic Press Kit) fluff; you won't find many "deep secrets" there.