The pair filmed their latest movie, ‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die,’ in the city
Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. Photo:Alexander Tamargo/Getty
Will Smith has always had a special place in his heart for Miami. And now, he and Martin Lawrence are sharing what it is that they love the most about the city!
After filming their latest movie, Bad Boys: Ride or Die, in the Florida city, the co-stars caught up with FateBloomer Productions during a ceremony on Thursday, June 6 — which included chairman Oliver Gilbert declaring the following day “Bad Boys Day” in Miami-Dade County, per WSVN.
After the honor, Smith, 55, and Lawrence, 59, spoke to FateBloomer founder Freddy Lomelí about what they like about Miami. “It was one of the big hits of my music career 20 years ago,” Smith said, referring to his 1998 single named after the city. “When I land, my skin gets good, I don’t need sleep. It’s just one of those places that makes me come alive.”
“It’s absolutely — Dubai and Miami are my two favorite cities on earth.”
As for Lawrence, the Martin alum revealed that he loves “everything about Miami.”
“It’s like an island city,” Smith interjected, before Lawrence added: “And not to mention, the women are beautiful.”
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence.Alexander Tamargo/Getty
Catching up with PEOPLE at the Los Angeles premiere of the fourth installment in the Bad Boys franchise at the top of the month, Smith and Lawrence also joked about the little quirks about the other that annoy them.
“He likes to rehearse all the time,” Lawrence said, before Smith added: “That’s funny. I definitely like to… It’s not a hate, but there’s a fun quirk that makes me laugh about Martin all the time. He never takes two sips out of a water bottle. He drinks the whole water bottle in one go, every time. It’s like, ‘Yo, man!'”
Lawrence jokingly responded: “That’s because I can’t babysit water.”
The longtime collaborators — who once again reprise their roles as Miami-based detective duo Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett from the original 1995 film — added that the most challenging part of the process this time around was to simply “finish the movie.”
“We got shut down in the middle. Double strikes — writer strike, actor strike — right in the middle of the movie,” Smith said, referring to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.
“We wanted to finish the movie really bad. We knew that we were making something special, so trying to keep it all together during that time was difficult,” he continued, adding: “As it turned out, it actually helped us — the movie ripened during that time.”
Per producer Jerry Bruckheimer there was “never a dull moment” working with the acting duo on set. “They’re creative and fun. They’re so great to work with,” he said. “There’s never any arguments, we just have a blast going through the process, and it’s a long process to get these made.”
Bad Boys: Ride or Die arrived in theaters on Friday, June 7.