Despite sounding like a great idea on paper, some films get stuck in development hell for so long that it makes you wonder just what the heck is really going on?
Such is the case with Bad Boys 3. After two extremely successful installments, you’d think that all parties involved would be eager to do another outing, but that hasn’t been the case. Admittedly, a glimmer of hope appeared when Joe Carnahan signed on to write and direct, but he ended up departing the project and after that, things fell into limbo.
That is, until today. Variety reports that Sony is close to giving the green light to the threequel, which will be titled Bad Boys For Life. Will Smith is expected to return to reprise his role as Detective Mike Lowrey and production is said to be eyeing an early 2019 start, with a release planned for Martin Luther King Jr. weekend in 2020. As for Martin Lawrence? Well, he’s not signed on just yet, but he’s said to be circling the project.
Apparently, Sony’s confident in the script from writer Chris Bremner, who’s said to have “delivered the right mixture of action set pieces and laughs.” Behind the camera, meanwhile, will be Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, who are perhaps best known for their work on FX’s Snowfall. Beyond that, we don’t have too much more to go on, but this is still hugely exciting news regardless.
As we mentioned above, Bad Boys 3 has been stuck in development hell forever now and given how old Smith and Lawrence are getting, the clock to make a third installment in the series has certainly been ticking. Whether they’ll be able to recapture the magic of the original (the sequel was a bit messy) remains to be seen, but it’s encouraging to hear that things are moving forward and as further updates roll in, we’ll be sure to let you know.
