EXCLUSIVE: Following the success of Bad Boys: Ride or Die, Will Smith is looking to reunite in a big way with the director who helped him launch the Bad Boys franchise nearly 30 years ago. While a deal isn’t officially closed, sources tell Deadline that Michael Bay is in final negotiations to direct the Netflix action pic Fast and Loose, which will star Smith. Sources add that while a start date isn’t official, the film would likely be the next project for both A-listers.
Deadline recently broke the news Smith that would be dropping out of the thriller Sugar Bandits, which was potentially lining up as his next project; once he parted ways with that film, the town was abuzz over what Smith might do next.
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Fast and Loose follows a man who wakes up in Tijuana with no memories. As he pieces together his past, he learns he’s been living two lives: one as a crime kingpin and the other as an undercover CIA agent. The script was written by Jon Hoeber, Erich Hoeber, Chris Bremner and Eric Pearson.
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Kelly McCormick and David Leitch for 87North will produce the pic with Smith, with Westbrook Studios Co-President and Head of Motion Pictures Jon Mone and Ryan Shimazaki in negotiations to produce for Westbrook and James Lassiter. Westbrook was also a producer on Bad Boys: Ride or Die.
Robert Simonds and Noah Fogelson will exec produce for STXfilms. Barry Waldman will also exec produce.
Fast and Loose has been something Smith has been developing for some time, and following the release of Bad Boys: Ride or Die, which grossed $400 million at the worldwide box office, several projects linked to Smith had gained momentum. The project is the type of major event film Netflix is still trying to prioritize, and the idea of reuniting Smith and Bay was just too hard to pass up for all parties.
Bay and Smith have ties going back to the original 1995 Bad Boys, which Bay directed and starred Smith and essentially launched both into movie stardom: Smith would become one of the most bankable stars for the next couple of decades, while Bay became the go-to director for any major tentpole. He ultimately took on the Transformers franchise, directing the first five films in the series.
After teaming for Bad Boys II in 2003, Smith and Bay stayed in touch over what their next team-up could be.
Bay previously helmed the 2019 action thriller 6 Underground for Netflix, which produced strong results. His 2022 thriller Ambulance is one of the most played action movies on the streamer. He is repped by Range Media Partners.