Bad Boys 4 will see a shift in tone from Bad Boys For Life

Bad Boys 4 will have a more comedic tone than Bad Boys For Life, according to director Adil El Arbi.

The original Bad Boys, released in 1995, helped cement Will Smith's status as a bankable movie star at the time. He and Martin Lawrence would go on to make Bad Boys II and Bad Boys for Life.

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The success of 2020's Bad Boys for Life led to speculation that another movie would be made, and the duo confirmed their plans in a video released on social media. In the video, Smith travels to Lawrence's home where the pair embrace, saying "IT'S ABOUT THAT TIME!"

The pair joked that they messed up the title of the last movie, as it was this one that should have been called Bad Boys 4 Life.

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence confirm Bad Boys 4 4?pic.twitter.com/zxh0lObshw

— MovieMeter (@MovieMeter_) February 1, 2023

Bad Boys For Life was noted for its drama as Smith's character Mike Lowry is shot and hospitalised for a period, while he met his long-lost son.

Not only will Bad Boys 4 have more jokes, the primary focus is set to be Lawrence's character, Marcus Burnett.

“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?" director El Arbi said on The Discourse podcast.

"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 theatre. Martin is going to a higher level in this one. This is the culmination of the Marcus Burnett arc.”

Bad Boys impact

Lawrence previously reflected on how Bad Boys catalysed his career in Hollywood, as before the 1995 release he was known as a comedy actor on television.

"It was big," he explained.

"For us to come together and prove that we can deliver, and we can pull people into the box office – that two black stars, two sitcom stars, could make the money at the box office (was huge). I didn't go to college, so I felt TV was my college years. I felt with movies, I had graduated; it was just different."