It's one of those mid-'80s movies that everybody still seems to love. Just like A Christmas Story and The Princess Bride and C.H.U.D., Richard Donner's The Goonies has kept a more-than-loyal fanbase over the past two decades. And (of course) every once in a while we hear some vague rumblings about a new sequel or remake or spin-off of some sort ... but nothing ever comes of it.

But the MTV Movies Blog recently had a brief chat with former Goonie Sean Astin, and here's what Mr. Rudy Hobbit had to say: "Steven [Spielberg] and Dick [Donner] and all the powers that be ... they really feel like the thing that made the movie strong was that it was about kids, so they really want to make the next movie about kids...the next generation of Goonies. And they've had a hard time tackling that." He also contends that the sequel is some sort of "absolute certainty," as if maybe it's going into production tomorrow or something. (It's not.)

So the plan is a multi-generational adventure in which the parents tag along with a new batch of treasure-seeking tots? OK, could work, I suppose. Odds are the original screenwriter (Chris Columbus) wouldn't be returning, but if Spielberg and Donner are both on board, you can consider me completely curious. Plus it'd just be fun to see all the old kids again. I mean, we still hang out with Astin, Josh Brolin, Martha Plimpton (sometimes) and Corey Feldman (kinda), but what about Kerri Green, Jeff Cohen and Jonathan Ke Quan? Could we actually get all the Goonies back in one place?

The Fratelli Brothers (Robert Davi and Joe Pantoliano) are of course still around, but mean ol' mama (Anne Ramsey) and goofy-headed Sloth (John Matuszak) left us a few years back. Not to be insensitive, but just about anyone (large) could play Sloth, really. If the sequel does go forward, I'll be very disappointed if Davi and Joey Pants are not invited along. Anyway, read more of Mr. Astin's wishful thinking right here. And while we're at it, someone go ask Steven Spielberg for an Innerspace sequel, eh?

(A pat on the back to the first person who can tell me where that Goonies II pic comes from!)