Clerks 3 is happening, promises director Kevin Smith. The filmmaker made his way to San Diego Comic-Con this year to promote his latest movie, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, which officially sees him return to the View Askew universe he launched back in 1994 with Clerks. We've been waiting for more than a decade for the final entry in the trilogy and Smith is newly determined to make it happen, confirming he's going to write a new script for the long-awaited sequel.

The reveal came during the Q&A portion of the panel, which took place in Hall H at SDCC. At one point, a fan predictably asked about Clerks 3. Kevin Smith explained that the script he originally wrote is something he's very proud of, but it doesn't accurately represent where he's at creatively in his life right now. Here's what Smith had to say about it.

"When I wrote Clerks III, I wrote it during a weirder darker point in my life, and it's kind of like the King Lear of our movies. I love it, it's one of my favorite scripts, but it's dark. It's bleak, and it's not what Dante and Randal deserve. We're never going to make that version of Clerks III, but I'm going to write a different Clerks III and we're going to make that f****** film, I promise. And in a world where we got to bring Ben [Affleck] back, I'll be able to bring Jeff [Anderson] back."

Kevin Smith renewed his friendship with Ben Affleck for Jay and Silent Bob Reboot and that seems to have given him new motivation. As previously revealed, Jeff Anderson, who plays Randall, was part of the reason Clerks 3 didn't happen after Smith wrote the first script. However, Smith seems convinced he'll be able to change his old friend's mind, while further stating he owes both Anderson and Brian O'Halloran, who plays Dante, one more movie.

"They gave me this much, I owe them one last thing."

Clerks kicked off Kevin Smith's career in a big way. The 1994 black and white movie was made on a dime and wound up becoming an Indie hit after screening at Sundance. Smith made a sequel, Clerks II which was released in 1996 and, relative to its small budget, also proved to be a success.

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot is set to arrive in theaters this October, with Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes embarking on a nationwide tour to promote it at special screenings. The filmmaker also recently announced he'll be doing a reading of his abandoned Clerks 3 script in New Jersey next month to benefit The First Avenue Playhouse. Smith also has several other planned projects, including Moose Jaws and his Howard the Duck animated series for Hulu. Maybe after all of that he can get cracking a new script to conclude the adventures of Dante and Randall. This news was previously reported by Comicbook.com.