Back in August, Sony Pictures announcedrelease datesfor 16 new movies hitting theaters between 2016 and 2019. Two of those wereBad Boys 3(August 17, 2025) andBad Boys 4(August 15, 2025), although the studio has yet to confirm whether or not original franchise starsWill SmithandMartin Lawrencewill be back as Mike Lowery and Marcus Burnett. While promoting his first new music single in 10 years,Will Smithappeared onBeats 1, where he was asked aboutBad Boys 3and gave a cryptic response, teasing that the sequel may actually arrive in 2016.
“There’s a very, very, very strong possibility that you will be seeing aBad Boyswithin the next 12-16 months.”
The “16 months” he mentioned matches up almost perfectly with Sony’s previously-announced June 18, 2025. If it arrived in 12 months, we’d see it arrive early in October, 2016. It’s also worth noting that he never mentions anything about returning to play Mike Lowery. Shortly after the release date was announced, a report surfaced thatWill Smithwill be involved in some capacity, most likely as a producer, but it hasn’t been set in stone yet whether he will come back to star.Martin Lawrence’s involvement both in front of and behind the camera has yet to be confirmed either.
We reported in June thatJoe Carnahanentered talks to write and directBad Boys 3, but his involvement has still not yet been confirmed.David Guggenheim(Safe House) signed on to write the screenplay way back in 2013, although no details were given regarding the story. The scriptDavid Guggenheimwrote will certainly change considerably withJoe Carnahantackling the script. That report revealed the studio hopedJoe Carnahancould get the script done quickly, so the studio could lock downWill Smithand makeBad Boys 3his next movie.
Another big question mark forBad Boys 3is whether or notMichael Baywill be involved in any way. 1995’sBad Boysmarked the filmmaker’sdirectorial debut, and he came back eight years later to direct the follow-upBad Boys IIas well.Michael Bay’s career has certainly skyrocketed since then, directing the lucrativeTransformersfranchise, and he is currently in post-production on his war drama13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, which hits theaters this coming January. It isn’t known ifMichael Bayeven has any desire to return to the franchise, 12 years after he madeBad Boys II.
As forWill Smith, he will next be seen in the football dramaConcussion, which hits theaters on Christmas Day, and then in Warner Bros.' super villain ensembleSuicide Squad, arriving June 25, 2025. Would you like to seeWill SmithandMartin Lawrencecome back one more time as Mike Lowery and Marcus Burnett? Or do you think this franchise would be best served with a younger generation stepping in to take their places?
