Will Smith has confirmed that a fourth Bad Boys film will be made, almost a year after famously slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars.
Last March’s altercation between the two sparked speculation about Smith’s future as a box office draw.
It cast particular doubt on the status of Bad Boys 4, which Sony had previously announced was in the works.
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However, it will now proceed, following Smith’s recent appearance as the lead in Apple’s Emancipation.
Although that film only had a limited theatrical run and was not nominated for an Oscar this year, the limited public backlash to its release may have reassured other studios that Smith’s image can be gradually rehabilitated.
The fourth Bad Boys film was announced by Smith with an Instagram video, which saw him reunite with Lawrence and deliver their catchphrase “bad boys for life”.
Smith is seen driving to Lawrence’s house and telling his followers, “Yo, I’ve got an announcement, y’all better stop scrolling.”
In the background, the opening bars of Shake Ya Tailfeather by Nelly, P Diddy, and Murphy Lee, from the soundtrack of 2003’s Bad Boys II, can be heard.
When the duo arrives at Lawrence’s door, they announce that the fourth film is officially on its way. “It’s getting close!” Lawrence yells.
The pair are seen joking that they should not have wasted the Bad Boys For Life title on the third film because it could have been used as a pun in the fourth.
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The untitled sequel will be directed by the same team who worked on the canceled Batgirl film.
Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah have already directed one previous film in the franchise, Bad Boys For Life, which was released in 2020.
That installment was one of the last successful blockbusters before the Covid pandemic, grossing $426 million (£346 million).
Lawrence played down the possibility of the next installment being canceled last summer. “We’ve got at least one more,” he told Ebony.
In terms of the franchise as a whole, he stated: “It was enormous. It was huge for us to come together and show that we can deliver and draw people into the box office – that two Black stars, two sitcom stars, could make money at the box office.”
The original Bad Boys film grossed $141 million (£114 million) worldwide in 1995, while the 2003 sequel Bad Boys II grossed $273 million (£222 million).
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The third film, Bad Boys For Life, outperformed the previous two entries combined at the box office, though this can be attributed in part to ticket price inflation over the previous 17 years.
