Martin Lawrence and Will Smith appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Wednesday to promote the third installment of the ‘Bad Boys’ franchise, ‘Bad Boys for Life,’ hitting theaters January 2020.
While there, the two reflected on the first two films — released in 1995 and 2003 — and talked about their experiences making the third.
via People:
“It’s been really special,” Smith, 51, 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, 54, chiming in, “Well we’re back! We’re here!”
Lawrence recalled that when he was cast in the first film 25 years ago, his sister was the one who suggested casting Smith in the other role.
“My sister… she brought Will to my attention,” the actor said. “So, I called Will, and we set up a dinner and Will came to my house.”
“Five minutes after talking to Will, he got the job,” Lawrence added, while Smith began to laugh.
Smith and Lawrence play Miami cops Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett, respectively, in the films. Last month, Sony Pictures dropped a new trailer for Bad Boys for Life, filled with car chases and shootouts.
Though Smith says he tried to keep up with the action at first, the actors admitted they’ve been leaving the stunts to their stuntmen in the action-packed sequel.
“I tried — like the first couple of weeks,” Smith said. “I probably got four days into shooting and I was like, ‘Yeah, we’re gonna let young boy do that one.’”
Check out the clip below. ‘Bad Boys for Life’ hits theaters Jan. 17, 2020.
