The time has come for the return of the Bad Boys movie series, and it is almost looking like a reunion of the original 1995 release of Bad Boys. Funnily enough, it will have one of the shorter breaks in between the films with eight years between the first and second movie, thirteen years between the second and the third, and now it is expected to have less than five on the outside for the fourth installment. Whatever the reason the next movie is flaming in with much of the fan’s favorite cast and crew returning.
Editor’s Note: This piece was updated on September 16, 2023.
bad boys 4
- Release Date
- July 3, 2019
- Cast
- Will Smith, Martin Lawrence
- Main Genre
- Action
- Genres
- Action, Adventure
- Studio
- Sony Pictures
When Does ‘Bad Boys 4’ Come Out?
Bad Boys 4 is set to hit theaters on June 14, 2024, where it will be opening against Disney and Pixar’s animated sequel Inside Out 2.
With the filming recently being interrupted by the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, there is a chance that the film will move off this release date, but nothing has been confirmed yet.
Will ‘Bad Boys 4’ Be Available on Streaming?
Bad Boys 4 will enjoy an exclusive theatrical release starting in June 2024, but once the film’s exclusive theatrical and PVOD windows end, it will be available to stream on Netflix, thanks to a deal that was struck between Sony and the streaming service back in early 2021.
Recent Sony films that have been made available on Netflix include 65, A Man Called Otto, and The Woman King.
Is There a Trailer for ‘Bad Boys 4’?
No, at this time there isn’t a trailer available for Bad Boys 4, however, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence did share an Instagram post announcing that the film was in production.
The video that was posted by both of the men starts with Will Smith driving on the way toward Lawrence’s home, hinting about some big news was about to drop. As he hinted at this news “Shake Ya Tailfeather” by Nelly, Diddy, and Murphy started playing. For those who aren’t familiar with it or who have slept since they watched the Bad Boys series, this song comes straight from the Bad Boys II soundtrack.
After arriving at the home Smith and Lawrence ask each other “It’s about that time?” and then they say “Bad Boys for life, baby” confirming the production for the film. While the title Bad Boys for Life has already been stolen by the third movie, both Smith and Lawrence lamented and commented they should have saved that name for the fourth movie which is being referred to as Bad Boys 4 though the movie is currently untitled.
In an interview published in September 2023, the film’s co-director, Adil El Arbi, teased the possible title for the fourth film:
“Well, you know, the title that we like – I don’t know that they’re going to go for it yet – would be like ‘Bad Boys Ride or Die’ because ‘Bad Boys 4 Life’ is already taken. We didn’t know there was going to be a fourth one, you know?”
Who Is in the Cast of ‘Bad Boys 4’?
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence will return as the titular “Bad Boys” Detective Lieutenant Mike Lowery and Detective Lieutenant Marcus Burnett.
Reprising their roles from the previous film will be Vanessa Hudgens as Kelly, Alexander Ludwig as Dom, Paola Núñez as Captain Rita Secada, and DJ Khaled as Manny the Butcher. John Salley, who played the role of the computer-hacking Fletcher in the first two Bad Boys films will be reprising his role for the fourth film.
Tasha Smith (Empire) will be replacing Theresa Randle in the role of Marcus’ wife Theresa.
Other new cast members include Eric Dane (Euphoria) as the film’s villain and Ioan Gruffudd (Fantastic Four) as Lockwood, an aspiring political candidate. Emmy nominee Rhea Seehorn (Better Call Saul) and rapper Joyner Lucas have also been cast in undisclosed roles.
What Will ‘Bad Boys 4’ Be About?
As with many of the previous Bad Boys films we can expect this upcoming film to be about some sort of drug bust with a combination of great action. While nothing has been confirmed yet, we know a few options that have been teased from the previous Bad Boys films.
In one of the credits scenes from Bad Boys 4 Life, we see that Armando Aretas aka Armando Lowrey may still be around for the next installment. Armando, was played by Jacob Scipio. After the reveal that Armando was actually the unknown son of Mike Lowery, it is possible that Mike may be attempting to use his connections to all Armando to help him with a case. Sure Armando has killed a ton of people, and is currently in prison, but isn’t that just the start of an interesting backstory?
El Arbi also revealed that the fourth film will be tonally different than the third film saying:
“But yeah, what’s going to happen in this one is, I think that there’s going to be way more comedy. The third one had the dramatic tone. With this one, it’s really our purpose to get people laughing and having a good time in the theater. Martin [Lawrence] is going to a higher level in this one. This is the culmination of the Marcus Burnett arc.”
Who Is Making ‘Bad Boys 4’?
There are quite a number of faces who are returning from behind the scenes as well. They include directors Adil El Arbi, and Bilall Fallah, who spearheaded the previous film, taking over from Michael Bay. The directing duo has been busy since the release of the previous film, having made the acclaimed drama Rebel and directed episodes of Ms. Marvel. They also directed the now-infamously canceled Batgirl movie which would have starred Leslie Grace in the title role alongside Academy Award winner Brendan Fraser as the film’s villain, Firefly.
While talking to Collider’s Christina Radish, the directing duo revealed that the success of Bad Boys For Life allowed them to get more ‘funky’ and ‘loco’ with the fourth film, saying:
“With Jerry Bruckheimer [high-profile producer] movies, we always tend to think about all the action and the crazy explosions. But actually, it’s the characters of his movies that are the reason why the audience loves to watch them. So, we went further and deeper on those character moments. But everything that we learned, in terms of camera movements and just directing on set, we tried to push ourselves and go even further. Sometimes we had some funky moments and funky shots that we didn’t try on the last one because it was maybe a little more classical. This time, we go more funky and more loco on this one.”
They will be joined by Chris Bremner as the screenwriter for the film, who is also a returning writer who worked on the previous movie as well. Producers on the film are Jerry Bruckheimer, Will Smith, and Doug Belgrad.
When and Where Did ‘Bad Boys 4’ Film?
Much like the previous three films in the series, filming for Bad Boys 4 is taking place primarily in Atlanta, Georgia, and Miami. Filming began in early April 2023 but was brought to a halt in July due to the ongoing 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.
Is There a ‘Bad Boys 5’ in the Works?
While Will Smith has said that there may be another film in the pipeline, it is still too early to call if this is going to come to pass. Fans certainly are asking for it, and the actors still seem more than willing, so it may not be as far farfetched as some may think. That being said, everyone has to make it out alive from Bad Boys 4 first.
