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Sound the alarms: "Police Squad!" is finally available to stream on Netflix.
Created by "Airplane!" alums David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker, "Police Squad!" follows police detective Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) and his team as they attempt to solve a series of crimes. Like "Airplane!" before it, the cop spoof is filled to the brim with visual gags, zany non-sequiturs, and a staggering number of laugh-out-loud jokes.
But while Nielsen's cult classic sitcom is more than worth a watch, many people haven't had the privilege. ABC canceled "Police Squad!" after just four episodes (with two more airing after the announcement) because the sitcom's laugh-a-minute pacing supposedly required too much focus from viewers. Until now, the show hadn't fared much better in the streaming era. It was nearly impossible to watch "Police Squad!" for years, unless you were lucky enough to own the series on physical media.
Police Squad! found new life in the Naked Gun franchise
While "Police Squad!" languished in streaming jail, its legacy lived on in one of the best-ever movies based on a TV show. "The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!" premiered in 1988, six years after ABC dropped its predecessor. The film saw Leslie Nielsen reprise his role as Frank Drebin, flanked by some major names including Priscilla Presley, George Kennedy, and yes, O.J. Simpson. The original film also spawned two successful Nielsen-led sequels, "The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear" and "Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult," which both came out in the '90s.
In 2025, a whole new generation was introduced to the squad with "The Naked Gun," director Akiva Schaffer's entry into the franchise. Liam Neeson had the daunting task of portraying Frank Drebin Jr., the son of the beloved detective, following Nielsen's death in 2010. Despite the change in leading man, critics and audiences alike responded well to the film. As of this writing, it holds an 88% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as a 72% audience score. Now, viewers in the U.S. can watch the show that started it all on Netflix.
