Summary

Bad Boys 4 ‘s box office success proves the franchise’s — and Will Smith’s — enduring popularity among viewers worldwide.
Will Smith’s star power is a major draw for sequels, indicating a bright future for the upcoming I Am Legend 2 .
Movie-goers’ love for sequels is evident in the continued success of franchises like Bad Boys , so I Am Legend 2 could become Smith’s most successful sequel yet.

Bad Boys: Ride or Die‘s record-breaking box office performance is great news for another upcoming sequel that stars Will Smith. In just a few weekends, Bad Boys 4‘s box office surpassed $360 million globally, proving that the Bad Boys franchise still strikes a chord with viewers. The series kicked off in 1995, grossing an impressive $141 million against its $20 million budget and spawning several sequels. Throughout every one of the Bad Boys movies, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence play Miami PD narcotics detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett, making the fourth film another must-watch for franchise fans.

Released in 2003, Bad Boys II garnered $273.3 million at the box office, and, after a 17-year gap, 2020’s Bad Boys for Life made a staggering $426.5 million. With over $360 million to its name so far, Bad Boys: Ride or Die seems on track to best the third installment in the franchise, but, whether it does so or not, one thing is clear: movie-goers love a good sequel. The Bad Boys movies are hardly the first to discover that trend, but its reliance on Will Smith’s star power bodes well for another upcoming movie sequel.

Bad Boys: Ride Or Die’s Box Office Is Good For I Am Legend 2

Will Smith-Led Franchises Still Have Massive Draws

While Bad Boys: Ride or Die‘s ending tees up yet another installment, Bad Boys 5 is far from the only sequel on Will Smith’s radar — especially since I Am Legend 2 is officially moving forward. A sequel to the 2007 post-apocalyptic thriller I Am Legend, the planned sequel is set to retcon the original movie’s ending, allowing Smith to join Michael B. Jordan in the follow-up. In I Am Legend, Smith plays Dr. Robert Neville, a US Army virologist who is researching a cure for Krippin Virus, which causes the infected to become vampiric creatures.

Will Smith is still a bankable movie star, which is also great news for the thriller’s sequel.

Known as Darkseekers, these mutated, cannibalistic, and vampire-adjacent creatures have overrun a mostly-abandoned New York City and roam the Manhattan streets at night to prey on those who are naturally immune to the Krippin Virus. I Am Legend went on to garner a staggering $585.4 million at the box office. Even though over 15 years have passed since the original film premiered, it’s not surprising that I Am Legend 2 is happening. If anything, Bad Boys 4 only reiterates that Will Smith is still a bankable movie star, which is also great news for the thriller’s sequel.

Could I Am Legend 2 Become Will Smith’s Biggest Sequel?

The Post-Apocalyptic Sequel Could Overtake Men In Black 3’s Box Office Record

Given the first I Am Legend‘s impressive gross, the sequel seems primed for success. In addition to I Am Legend 2‘s nostalgia factor and that it’s part of an existing series, I Am Legend 2 has impressive star power. Michael B. Jordan, who is set to join Smith as an actor and producer, has been part of massive blockbusters like Black Panther and the Creed movies. All of that to say, I Am Legend 2 could easily surpass Bad Boys 4 — and even top the $654.2 million gross of Men In Black 3, Smith’s biggest sequel to date.