Will Smith And Martin Lawrence Hung Out At Kevin Hart’s Show, And Now All I Can Think About Is Bad Boys 4 Footage

Martin Lawrence yelling and Will Smith holding gun in Bad Boys for Life
(Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Earlier this month, the broadcast of the Super Bowl offered a whole lot of treats for movie fans. In addition to exciting footage from titles that have already debuted footage (like the new Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes trailer), audiences were also served up a first look at Deadpool & Wolverine and a very early preview of Twisters. Sadly, one upcoming 2024 blockbuster that didn't showcase any new marketing materials during the big game was Bad Boys 4... and while that tested fan patience, a new Instagram post from star Will Smith is also doing nothing to quell anticipation.

This weekend, Will Smith attended a Kevin Hart standup performance at the Coca-Cola Roxy Theater in Atlanta, and the two stars were joined in a backstage photo by a very familiar face: Martin Lawrence. Check out the post below, which includes the short caption, "Damn! My guy @kevinhart4real was on FIRE tonight!!"

A post shared by Will Smith

A photo posted by willsmith on

Bad Boys 4, which still doesn't have an official title (why did they waste Bad Boys For Life?!), was first announced back in January 2020 following the blockbuster success of the series' third installment. A whole lot of stuff has happened in the world since then – including the COVID-19 pandemic and the infamous Will Smith slap at the 2022 Oscars – but production on the feature finally got up and running last spring. There was a hiccup during principal photography due to the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes, but the feature is now in post-production.

Bad Boys 4 will not only see the return of Will Smith's Mike Lowrey and Martin Lawrence's Miles Burnett, but Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Núñez and DJ Khaled will all also be back to reprise their roles from Bad Boys For Life. Grey's Anatomy star Eric Dane (a.k.a. McSteamy) is reportedly playing the villain in the film, though plot details are being kept a secret for now. Other franchise newcomers include Ioan Gruffudd and Better Call Saul star Rhea Seehorn.

Chris Bremner, who co-wrote Bad Boys For Life is back to write the script for Bady Boys 4, and filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (who are collectively credited as Adil & Bilall) are directing the feature as their first project since Warner Bros. cancelled the release of Batgirl.

It's unknown when we'll get our first look at the film, but Bad Boys 4 is set to be one of 2024's big summer tentpoles and is scheduled to hit theaters on June 14 (the same weekend as Pixar's Inside Out 2 ). Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more updates about the exciting sequel, including news about its title and word on when we will finally get a debut trailer.

Eric Eisenberg
Assistant Managing Editor

Eric Eisenberg is the Assistant Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. After graduating Boston University and earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism, he took a part-time job as a staff writer for CinemaBlend, and after six months was offered the opportunity to move to Los Angeles and take on a newly created West Coast Editor position. Over a decade later, he's continuing to advance his interests and expertise. In addition to conducting filmmaker interviews and contributing to the news and feature content of the site, Eric also oversees the Movie Reviews section, writes the the weekend box office report (published Sundays), and is the site's resident Stephen King expert. He has two King-related columns.