Yahoo News Will Smith and Martin Lawrence tease future movies after “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” ending
"Well, these younger actors are going to need to do more of the stunts, that's for sure," Smith tells Entertainment Weekly.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Bad Boys: Ride or Die.
They ride together, they die together — they're Bad Boys for life. But where does the iconic duo of Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) go from here after their latest outing in Bad Boys: Ride or Die?
Over the course of the last two movies, we've seen Mike and Marcus wrestle heavily with their own mortality. In Bad Boys for Life, Marcus actually turns in his badge and retires to spend more time with his family. It's only when Capt. Howard (Joe Pantoliano) is murdered that Mike is able to rope him back into policing.
The latest installment continues this theme, with Marcus suffering a heart attack within the opening moments of the movie. Even the usually cool Mike starts to feel the emotional burden of being a bad boy. For the first time in his life, he's rendered useless in the field when he starts to experience debilitating panic attacks mid-firefight. So, it's not hard to imagine that the duo is nearing the end of the road when it comes to crime fighting.
Frank Masi/Sony
What would it take to reteam for Bad Boys 5?
Still, Smith and Lawrence tell Entertainment Weekly that they're both down to do more movies if that's what the fans want — just with a few caveats. "Well, these younger actors are going to need to do more of the stunts, that's for sure," Smith, 55, jokes. "It is a world and characters that are just an absolute joy to be with. In a movie theater with Mike and Marcus, it just feels like home. So, as long as there's a reason — I never wanted to be one of those dudes who make sequels just because people will go. I want to make them because there is something to say and the characters have a place that they're developing to that will be interesting and fun to watch and maybe even a little helpful."
He adds, "Is there something that can happen in these characters' lives that is worth asking people to go to a movie theater for? And with this movie, the answer is a resounding yes."
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"We always have so much fun making these movies and you’ve got to give the fans what they want," says Lawrence. "Will and I have a great time working together, so as long as the fans want it and the demand is there, I’ll keep trying to give them what they want."
As for the possibility of a Bad Boys 5? "We’ll have to see," Lawrence says. "You know I never say never, but it also has to make sense. If the fans ask for it, you know we could be back."
Frank Masi/Sony
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in 'Bad Boys: Ride or Die'Does Ride or Die's ending set up future films?
Long story short, no, it doesn't. There aren't any major cliffhangers or post-credit scenes, and despite flirting with retirement (and therapy) over the course of the film, it's left unclear whether the duo will remain on the force or take a much-needed mental health break. But if you want to get caught up on where we leave our bad boys and their friends/enemies at the end of the fourth film, read on for a spoiler-heavy breakdown below.
Ride or Die sees Mike and Marcus finally break bad and run afoul of the law — at least in the eyes of Miami PD. At the beginning of the film, the duo is forced to go on the run when they get wrapped up in a conspiracy to frame the late Capt. Howard. Fortunately, they have friends in high places, so they team up with Advanced Miami Metro Operations agents Kelly (Vanessa Hudgens) and Dorn (Alexander Ludwig), as well as Mike's ex-girlfriend (and the new police captain), Rita (Paola Núñez). Together, they uncover the truth: Rita's new boyfriend, Miami District Attorney Lockwood (Ioan Gruffudd), is the actual traitor. When he knows he's been caught, he admits that for years, he had been turning a blind eye to cartel activity in exchange for intel pertaining to national security. He then teamed up with former special ops soldier James McGrath (Eric Dane) to cover his tracks by pinning the crimes on Capt. Howard.
Related: What to remember from Bad Boys for Life before you see Bad Boys: Ride or Die
By the end of the movie, Mike and Marcus expose McGrath and Lockwood as the real criminals and take them down, with Mike killing McGrath himself after Marcus helps snap him out of a panic attack by repeatedly slapping him in the face (whether this is a reference to another famous slap is unclear). Meanwhile, Capt. Howard's family gets caught up in the action, with his daughter, U.S. Marshall Judy Howard (Rhea Seehorn), hunting Mike's long-lost son — and her father's killer — Armando (Jacob Scipio). Armando escapes prison early in the film when McGrath and his goons unsuccessfully try to murder him and the bad boys on a plane transferring him to a new prison. When the plane crash lands, Mike, Marcus, and Armando go on the run together.
Instead of disappearing into the swamps, Armando decides to team with Mike and Marcus to expose Lockwood and ultimately redeems himself by nearly sacrificing his life to save Judy's daughter. When Judy finally catches up to him, Mike convinces her to allow the bleeding and battered fugitive to escape the scene on a boat. The last we see of Armando, he's motoring off into the distance.
Mike and Marcus are now exonerated of all charges, but the movie doesn't definitively answer whether they'll continue working as partners. Instead, it ends with them giving up control in another way. At a celebratory barbecue with the surviving good guys, they reluctantly relinquish the honor of grillmaster to Reggie (Dennis McDonald), who finally earned their respect by using his military training to protect their family from attackers earlier in the movie. The final shot is a close-up of Reggie smiling, finally getting his redemption after Mike and Marcus intimidated him as a teenager in Bad Boys II.
Bad Boys: Ride or Die is now playing in theaters.
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.
