Sony Pictures
Bad Boys: Ride or Die, which releases in movie theaters this weekend, is just Will Smith’s second movie (and first blockbuster) since “The Slap” — the night he infamously slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Academy Awards.
Instead of what should’ve been a landmark night for his career, as he won his first ever Academy Award, the 2022 Oscars sent the trajectory of Will Smith’s career in the wrong direction, and he hasn’t been seen much since outside of his Instagram account.
Bad Boys: Ride or Die, however — given the underperformances of The Fall Guy and Furiosa — is expected to be the first true blockbuster hit of the summer (tracking to make $50M domestic in its first weekend), meaning much of the movie-going audience is going to be seeing Smith for the first time in a long time.
The film, though, isn’t shy about reminding audiences of The Slap, as the film includes a scene that includes Smith’s co-star Martin Lawrence slapping him across the face.
“Mike’s having a panic attack, a persistent problem that’s developed during the course of the movie, as he frets over losing those closest to him. So, Marcus slaps him. Not once, but repeatedly — amping his partner up to get back to his ‘bad boy’ self so they can shoot their way out of this jam and restore their good names.” [via Variety]
The 55-year-old movie star currently has a bevy of projects in various vague states of development. Should Bad Boys: Ride or Die be a hit and the acceptance of Smith back into movie goer’s good graces confirmed, don’t be surprised to see many of those projects — such as an I am Legend sequel, for example — begin to pick up significant steam.
Bad Boys: Ride or Die also stars Joe Pantoliano, Vanessa Hudgens, Rhea Seehorn, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Núñez, Jacob Scipio, DJ Khaled, Eric Dane, Ioan Gruffudd, Melanie Liburd and Tiffany Haddish. Watch the official trailer below.