Ever since the release of the first BAD BOYS sequel back in 2003, there's been talk of a third film which would reunite Detectives Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence), but time after time, development on the BAD BOYS sequel has hit a wall. For a while there, it seemed as though BAD BOYS FOR LIFE, which was what they were calling the sequel, was actually going to happen. Joe Carnahan (THE GREY) came onboard to write and direct the film and both Martin Lawrence and Will Smith seemed keen to return. Then, Carnahan departed the project due to scheduling conflicts earlier this year and Sony recently removed the film from their release schedule. D'oh.
It must have been frustrating to have come so close only to see everything fall away, and it's left Martin Lawrence feeling as though the BAD BOYS sequel will never happen. While speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Lawrence said, "I don’t think we’re going to get one, not the way everything’s turning out. Will is off doing another movie, and I don’t think it’s going to happen." Should Sony get the project going again, Martin Lawrence says that he'll be there. "I'm ready right now," Lawrence laughed. "If they wanted to do it, I’m ready, but I don’t have control of that. That’s the studio’s decision."
Before he exited, Joe Carnahan had teased that BAD BOYS FOR LIFE would have been the "strongest of the trilogy thus far," adding that the film would have dealt with "what becomes of Bad Boys when they're not boys anymore." Carnahan also said that "there’s a lot of funny shit in this movie, and there’s also a very mysterious, but tonally spot-on story that I think is kind of perfect for where we are in this day and age, where the guys are and reflectively, a very modern take on these guys." As for whether we'll ever see BAD BOYS return in some form, I wouldn't bet against it, but I'm also not about to hold my breath.
Are you still holding out hope for BAD BOYS 3 or should the franchise be left alone?