Will Smith & Martin Lawrence Officially Returning For 'Bad Boys 4'

Perhaps Will Smith and Martin Lawrence didn’t get the memo that Warner Bros. Discovery and DC Studios were going to unveil a massive slate of five films and five TV series because the duo picked maybe the worst time ever to announce the official beginning of preproduction on “Bad Boys 4.” 

READ MORE: Will Smith Explains His Mindset When He Slapped Chris Rock At The Oscars: “Hurt People Hurt People”

According to a post on social media (as well as a more detailed report on Deadline), Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are officially reuniting for “Bad Boys 4.” The video shared by Smith doesn’t really give much info other than the film is happening, followed by a lot of yelling, and the funny realization that the fourth film should have been called “Bad Boys 4 Life,” but they wasted that title on the third film, “Bad Boys For Life.” Oh well, you win some and you lose some. 

The report from Deadline does go into a bit more detail. Apparently, the film is in preproduction now with the previous film’s directors, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, returning to helm the next sequel, which is based on a script by Chris Bremner. Not much else is known about the possible plot or anything. I mean, you could speculate that it will involve plenty of car chases and shootouts. 

READ MORE: ‘Aladdin 2’: Guy Ritchie “Wouldn’t Have Any Issue” Bringing Will Smith Back For Upcoming Sequel

Interestingly, people were wondering if “Bad Boys 4” was going to be made anytime soon, after last year’s controversy surrounding Smith. The actor, as everyone is well aware by now, slapped Chris Rock during the live Oscars ceremony. Many assumed that would lead to Smith taking time away from the business and perhaps studios being more cautious about working with him. Well, not at all, it appears, as the actor’s most recent film, “Emancipation,” was released last fall and he’s already about to begin work on “Bad Boys 4.” So, it would seem as if it was just more of a minor speed bump than a full red light. 

Obviously, it’s too early to know a release date, but if you were waiting on “Bad Boys 4” news and weren’t all that excited by the DC Studios announcement, then you should be happy now.