The second trailer for Bad Boys for Life reveals more about Mike (Will Smith) and Marcus' (Martin Lawrence) potentially final case together. Famous for its stars' chemistry and director Michael Bay's over the top set pieces and action, the first two Bad Boys movies are far from critical darlings, but grossed more than $400 million between them. Bad Boys II, however, was only a moderate financial success due to its $130 million price tag (an especially massive sum in 2003), which is why it's taken nearly seventeen years for a third installment to get off the ground.
A trailer for Bad Boys for Life dropped in early September, offering a sneak peek at Smith and Lawrence back in the roles they originated almost twenty-five years ago. By the look of things, directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (Gangsta) have partially downgraded the action barometer from the Bayhem levels of Bad Boys II, while at the same time carrying over the aesthetic of Bay's initial two entries. That only makes sense since, as the latest preview points out, the older Mike and Marcus are not quite as reckless as they used to be (emphasis on "quite").
Sony dropped the new Bad Boys for Life trailer online today, ahead of its premiere in theaters this weekend. You can check it out in the space below.
This new trailer dives a little deeper into Bad Boys for Life's story than its predecessor did, revealing that Marcus has to put his retirement on hold when Mike's life is endangered by a vengeful mob boss whose brother was defeated by them. Beyond that, though, the promo focuses on the Bad Boys franchise's biggest selling points - again, its leads' interplay and the bombastic spectacle - more than the plot. It also makes rooms for the expected jokes about Marcus and Mike being older now, with one of their young recruits (Riverdale's Charles Melton) even calling Mike grandpa at one point. Altogether, Bad Boys for Life looks pretty much exactly like the movie one would expect it to be, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.
Beyond that, Sony's marketing continues to push the idea of Bad Boys for Life being the end of the franchise. It's not a bad approach either, and gives Bad Boys fans all the more incentive to see the film in theaters (rather than waiting to watch it at home). There's always a chance Sony will change their minds and green-light Bad Boys 4 down the line, but they're smart for presenting this as a standalone sequel for now. Paramount is probably going to have to scrap their plans for more Terminator movies after last weekend's Terminator: Dark Fate under-performed, which just goes to show the dangers of studios getting ahead of themselves. With Bad Boys for Life, on the other hand, all the film really needs to do is turn a profit (either big or small) to go down as a success.
Source: Sony
