‘Bad Boys’ Director Michael Bay Says Sony Didn’t Believe The Film Should Star Two Black Actors: They Had No Faith In It

Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Michael Bay

‘Bad Boys’ Director Michael Bay Says Sony Didn’t Believe The Film Should Star Two Black Actors: They Had No Faith In It

Michael Bay is sharing details about what it took to create the critically acclaimed “Bad Boys” series.

In a recent interview, the famed movie director opened up about the difficulties of shooting the first “Bad Boys” film, not having support from the movie’s producers. The action film, which premiered in 1995, stars Will Smith, 53, and Martin Lawrence, 56, as two Miami-Dade narcotics detectives. While recently chatting about the movie, Michael Bay, 57, recalled Sony’s initial response to the film casting two black actors for the lead roles. He stated:

“Sony didn’t believe in the movie, because two Black actors don’t sell overseas. They had no faith in it.”

Martin Lawrence, Téa Leoni, Michael Bay, Will Smith

He continued:

“I was watching James Cameron’s ‘True Lies’ and I’m like, Oh, my god, this guy has so much money. I have only $9 million. And they shut me down, literally”

Michael then shared how Sony literally shut the power off on set while production was happening, letting the crew know how much they disbelieved in the film. According to him, the network execs didn’t think two black actors could lead to box office success, especially in foreign markets. However, the “Transformers” director says he knew well how to handle the situation. He stated:

“Luckily I had 500 days of film set experience doing videos, commercials, working with some of the most famous athletes in the world, and that’s where you really truly know how to deal with assholes.”

Despite being undermined by Sony, “Bad Boys” went on the gross $141 million worldwide and was greenlit for two sequels, garnering over $840 million between all three films.

A fourth installment to the film is reportedly in the works. However, after Will Smith’s recent debacle at the Oscar awards, the movie was allegedly paused with an undetermined future.

Are you surprised to hear Sony didn’t believe in the success of “Bad Boys”? Let us know what you think in the comments. 

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