Detectives Burnett and Lowery’s new case has an official name.
Sony has titled Bad Boys 3 as Bad Boys For Life, EW confirmed. The name change comes with the project moving closer to reality with a Jan. 12, 2018 release in mind, a source tells EW.
The new title is a fitting throwback to 2003’s Bad Boys II where star Will Smith tells his cop partner Martin Lawrence, “We ride together, we die together. Bad boys for life.” (See the clip, below.) The two will reprise the roles they debuted in 1995’s Bad Boys — Michael Bay directed that movie and the sequel. The Grey’s Joe Carnahan is in the director’s chair for Bad Boys For Life, not Bay.
Bad Boys For Life has had three different release dates in the last year, originally set for Feb. 17, 2017 before shifting to June 2, 2017. Now, it’s back to a winter window.
There’s a tangential Bad Boys connection to the new name. Sean “Puff Daddy” Combs’s record label is Bad Boy Records, a part of Sony Music. One of his singles (and all-time great music videos) is called “Bad Boys For Life.” Combs appeared on “Shake Ya Tailfeather” with Nelly and Murphy Lee; the Billboard No. 1 hit appeared on the Bad Boys II soundtrack.
Despite the finality of the title, Bad Boys For Life has no bearing onBad Boys 4, a source tells EW. Bad Boys 4 is currently dated for July 3, 2019.
