After years of on and off again status, it looks like Lethal Weapon 5 may finally become a reality. Richard Donner, the legendary director who helmed all the Lethal Weapons, has original stars Mel Gibson and Danny Glover ready to reprise their roles, and is now only waiting for the green light from the studio. Things are moving fast, but Donner was sparked to get things moving again. Donner explained why he felt that now was the right time for Lethal Weapon 5 to finally arrive in theaters, saying:
I was thinking about it for a long time and I had an idea in my head, but I never did anything about it. And then, just before the summer I was honored by the Academy, and at the function, Mel and Danny were there, amongst others, to tell their stories about me. When I saw them on stage again, the two of them, and the audience loved them...just loved everything they did. When it was all over and we were driving home, with Lauren, I said 'You know, I think it's time. I think the people want to see them and it's time to put them to bed.
Lethal Weapon 5 has had a few false starts over the years, as the project just never seemed to be able to get any traction. Now, Richard Donner is ready to bring his buddy action-comedy to a conclusion with a movie that will reunite Mel Gibson and Danny Glover on the big screen. It was seeing the two actors together again that actually inspired Donner to get moving on Lethal Weapon 5. The legendary filmmaker was honored by the Academy earlier this year, and Gibson and Glover were onstage together to honor Donner. After seeing the two of them reunited and how the audience "loved them," Donner decided that people were ready to see one more Lethal Weapon movie.
Appearing on the Spocklight podcast, Richard Donner revealed that he isn't the only one missing the Lethal Weapon movies. He has Mel Gibson and Danny Glover on the hook to come back too, signifying that there is some real momentum behind this project. He's only waiting on the studio's response ,and should it get a green light, the ball can officially start rolling.
While we can't say for sure that audiences want a Lethal Weapon sequel, Hollywood sure has been trying to make one for some time. The most significant recent attempt came from Shane Black, who wrote the script for the first Lethal Weapon movie. He had an idea for a Lethal Weapon 5, but it seemed like it was dead in the water. However, studios are always looking for recognizable IP they can resurrect, and the Lethal Weapon franchise was pretty successful back in the day. The Lethal Weapon TV show seems to be going over well, so perhaps now is the time for another big screen adventure for Murtaugh and Riggs.
