Development hell is a realm that any film worth its salt is lucky to escape. Projects in this land of the damned were once promising, until the point where they become an empty promise. But every now and then, a movie is powerful enough to escape this demon pit, and make it to the finish line, and Bad Boys For Life is one such film to earn such an honor.
This calls for a celebration, and leave it to Martin Lawrence to commemorate the occasion with a photo on the day Bad Boys For Life wrapped production. Check out that photo for yourself below:
It wasn’t too long ago that Will Smith was commemorating the start of production for Bad Boys For Life, so it’s fitting that Martin Lawrence back his partner’s call with a similar gesture during the long awaited film’s final moments of filming. Considering the history of this film’s production, we can’t blame them for celebrating that Bad Boys For Life actually exists, and is about to have the finishing touches bestowed upon it for a run in theaters next year.
Several years past 2003’s release of Bad Boys II, rumors about a third installment in director Michael Bay’s buddy cop franchise ran rampant up until 2015 when there was an official announcement of not one, but two sequels, set to debut in 2017 and 2019. While there was a fair amount of optimism that this plan would come to fruition, it eventually was derailed, despite promising developments along the way.
If Bad Boys For Life’s original incarnation stuck, we’d have seen a film written and directed by Joe Carnahan, the mind that brought us films like Smokin’ Aces, The Grey, and the upcoming film, Boss Level. But eventually, the setbacks that continued to delay this third film saw Carnahan leave the project, paving the way for a new pair of directors and a new lease on life.
The current lineup for Bad Boys For Life does see Will Smith and Martin Lawrence return to their respective roles of detectives Mike Lowry and Marcus Burnett, as seen in this commemorative photo on Lawrence’s Twitter feed. But this time out, young directors Adil El Arbi and Bilal Fallah will be shepherding the destruction and excitement that follow this legendary pair, with a particularly interesting rumored plot involving the break up (and eventual make up) of Lowry and Burnett.
It all brings us to this very real moment, where Martin Lawrence, Will Smith, and everyone else behind Bad Boys For Life have completed their task. Now, all that stands between this hotly anticipated film and its potential audience is the post-production process. Looking at everything this film went through to get here, that’ll probably be the easiest part of the whole process.
Bad Boys For Life will finally have its day in theaters on January 17, 2020; unless it gets a bump into a summer release date more worthy of movies sporting gun fights and car chases.
