Don’t let its long-delayed production fool you—Bad Boys For Life is going to be the rare trilogy capper that outshines the preceding films. It’s going to change the way you look at Michael Bay movies, in part because Joe Carnahan has taken over for the bombastic director. That’s right, Joe Carnahan—the director of The A-Team adaptation, but also Narc. Yes, the man behind Smokin’ Aces and The Grey is combining those sensibilities to oversee Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s protracted cinematic reunion as Miami cops.
But, as Carnahan tells io9, he won’t be rushing the process, and not just because he’s currently filming Wheelman with Frank Grillo. The writer-director wants to make damn sure the latest entry in the series is up to the exacting standards of Bad Boys devotees. So, as a reward to fans who stuck with the project through its drawn-out development, Carnahan’s going to make the best Bad Boys movie ever. You might even say it’s going to be the Toy Story 3 of Bad Boys movies, and not just because Ned Beatty’s involved (okay, we made up that part). Well, you might not, but Carnahan has.
“Unless you’re Toy Story 3, usually third ones aren’t the strongest, and I think this one will be the strongest of the trilogy thus far,” Carnahan says, while promising to put in the hard work on all the elements that make up the combustible-action franchise. He continued: “I’m a big believer in ‘Do the work at the script level until you’ve got something you know works’.” If you’re somehow still not convinced that Carnahan’s written “the strongest script of any of those movies,” read on, because shit’s about to get real(ly self-congratulatory).
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. It’s kind of what becomes of Bad Boys when they’re not boys anymore.
Although we’re now a little disappointed that the movie isn’t titled Bad Boys II Men, it is reassuring to learn that despite all the time spent apart, Smith and Lawrence will grow together in their next outing. It’s just too bad we won’t see that for a while, because of the aforementioned delays.