Bad Boys 4: Release date, cast, plot & more

Cameron Frew
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys

Here’s what we know about the Bad Boys 4 release date, as Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s return for a fourth mission. We’ve got updates on the cast involved, the plot rumors, trailers, and more.

Bad boys, bad boys whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when they come for you? That’s right, Smith and Lawrence are officially returning as Detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett for Bad Boys 4.

The franchise began way back in 1995, with Michael Bay’s action movie grossing more than $140 million off a $19 million budget. Unsurprisingly, we got a sequel eight years later, but it was panned by critics and it took another 17 years for the third movie, Bad Boys For Life, to arrive.

Well, this sh*t just got real—development on Bad Boys 4 is officially in motion, so here’s what we know about the new movie so far.

Is there a Bad Boys 4 release date?

Bad Boys 4 will release on June 7, 2024.

The movie was originally aiming for a June 14 release date, but it was recently moved forward by a week.

The sequel was confirmed by Smith and Lawrence on January 31, 2023 with Smith sharing a video to Instagram with his co-star.

“Yo, I’ve got an announcement. Y’all better stop scrolling,” he says, as he plays the opening bars of ‘Shake Ya Tailfeather’ from the Bad Boys II soundtrack. “I wish I was you, not knowing what I’m about to show me.”

He soon arrives at Lawrence’s door, where they both declare that the fourth movie is in development. “It’s about that time!” Lawrence yells.

In February 2024, CBS reported that the production shut down an entire section of Fort Lauderdale Beach, which just goes to show how huge in scale this movie will be. It also tells us that production is ongoing, though we suspect it will be close to being completed, given the release date is getting so close now.

What is Bad Boys 4 called?

Bad Boys 4 is officially titled Bad Boys Ride or Die, according to Murphy’s Multiverse.

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys 4

The third movie was titled Bad Boys For Life, which—by the actors’ own admission—would have worked nicely as the fourth film’s name. “We shouldn’t have called it that though,” Smith joked in his video.

Bad Boys 4 cast: Who’s in it?

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence will reprise their roles as Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett in Bad Boys 4.

The Bad Boys 4 cast is pretty stacked, and includes:

  • Will Smith as Mike Lowrey
  • Martin Lawrence as Marcus Burnett
  • Lex Elle as Detective Xander Blackmon
  • Eric Dane
  • Ioan Gruffudd
  • Paola Nunez as Rita Secada
  • Vanessa Hudgens as Kelly
  • Tasha Smith as Theresa
  • Alexander Ludwig as Dorn
  • Rhea Seehorn
  • DJ Khaled as Manny the Butcher

In an interview with Ebony magazine last year, Lawrence said: “We got one more at least.

“[The first Bad Boys] was big. For us to come together and prove that we can deliver, and we can pull people into the box office—that two Black stars, two sitcom stars, could make money at the box office [was huge].”

Speaking to ET, Lawrence also teased: “It has the chance to be the best one of them all and everybody’s doing their thing… we got a lot of the team back from the last one. Big Willie’s doing his thing as always and so focused and, yeah, it has the chance to be the biggest one.”

Eric Dane, best known for his roles as Cal Jacobs in Euphoria and Dr. Mark Sloan in Grey’s Anatomy, will play the villain. In addition, Ioan Gruffudd of Fantastic Four fame will appear in Bad Boys 4 in a currently undisclosed role.

Better Call Saul star Rhea Seehorn recently joined the cast, but her role hasn’t been confirmed yet. She will be joined by Vanessa Hudgens, who will reprise her role as Kelly, and Paola Nunez as Rita Secada, returning to the franchise once more.

Vanessa Hudgens as Kelly in Bad Boys For Life

Unfortunately, no other major cast members have been confirmed at the time of writing, but there are a few reasonable guesses we can make. Firstly, Joe Pantoliano will not return as Captain Conrad Howard, as he was murdered in the third film.

If we were betting, we’d say it’s basically guaranteed we’ll see Jacob Scipio as Armando Aretas Lowrey, Mike’s son whom he shared with Isabel (Kate del Castillo), who was killed in Bad Boys For Life.

Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah will return to direct, with Chris Bremner writing the script. Jerry Bruckheimer will also serve as a producer.

Bad Boys 4 plot: What is it about?

The plot of Bad Boys Ride or Die hasn’t been confirmed, but it’ll likely follow Mike and Marcus on a new case with AMMO, while we expect to see Mike working on his relationship with Armando.

At the end of Bad Boys For Life, Rita became Miami PD’s captain while Mike and Marcus were put in charge of the AMMO team. In a post-credits scene, Mike also visited Armando in prison and offered him a chance at redemption, presumably by working for AMMO, which he accepted.

Is there a Bad Boys 4 trailer?

No there’s no Bad Boys 4 trailer right now – but you can check out the trailer for the third movie below:

That’s all we know about the Bad Boys 4 release date for now. In the meantime, check out some of our other upcoming TV and movie hubs like The Boys Season 4, the Harry Potter TV show, and Deadpool 3. If guns and action are your bag, you’ll probably enjoy learning about Twisted Metal Season 2 and how to watch Run Hide Fight, too.

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About The Author

Cameron is Deputy TV and Movies Editor at Dexerto. He's an action movie aficionado, '80s obsessive, Oscars enthusiast, and a staunch Scot. He earned a First-Class Honours Degree in Multimedia Journalism from Glasgow Caledonian University, accredited by the NCTJ and BJTC. He began his career at UNILAD, starting as a Junior Journalist and becoming Entertainment Editor prior to joining Dexerto. You can contact him at cameron.frew@dexerto.com.