Nearly 17yearsafter the release of the last “Bad Boys film,”Will SmithandMartin Lawrenceare teaming up again for the third installment in the franchise that opens in theaters in a few weeks.
The first movie launched in 1995 and made $141.4M worldwide. The sequel was released eight years later and grossed $273.3M WW bringing the franchise’s total to $414.7M, perDeadline.This latest installment cost a reported $90M before P&A, and the studio is banking on a record opening MLK holiday weekend.Box Office Propredicts it will earn $24 to $34 million.
“Bad Boys For Life” follows “Marcus Burnett (Lawrence), who is now a police inspector, and Mike Lowery (Smith), who is in a midlife crisis. The two unite again when an Albanian mercenary, whose brother they killed, promises them an important bonus,” Deadline writes.
So, just how much did the stars earn for BB3? Here’s the breakdown via cheatsheet.com: Lawrence earned $6 million while Smith was paid $17 million.
Smith will also reportedly earn $20 million for playing the father of Venus and Serena Williams in the upcoming movie “King Richard,” due out in November 2020.
Meanwhile, Smith and Lawrence recently appeared on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” to promote the film, and the actors noted that their reunion has been “really special.”
“It’s been really special,”Smith said. “We just got back. We shot some pieces in Atlanta, and just people seeing us together on the street — there’s like this really magical thing with Bad Boys.”
“I didn’t know people had that kind of energy towards it,” he added, with Lawrence chiming in, “Well we’re back! We’re here!”
Smith also said he wasn’t worried that he and Martin’s onscreen chemistry might have changed since the last film.
“We hadn’t really done anything in [years] so there was a little concern, you know, how will it be with the chemistry?”he said. “But literally the first moment on stage, like, that first moment connecting, it was right back.”
“Bad Boys For Life” opens nationwide on January 17.