After months of rumors and speculation, Sony Pictures officially revealed at CinemaCon last April that theMen in Blackand21 Jump Streetcrossover was officially happening, under the working titleMIB 23. The studio setJames Bobinto direct from a script byRodney Rothman, butJonah Hillteased in August that scheduling for the movie would be impossible, and he doesn’t think it will ever see the light of day. That was the last we heard about the project, but today we have word fromBarry Sonnenfeld, the director of all threeMen in Blackmovies, who reveals why this project, nor Men in Black 4, hasn’t happened yet.
Digital Spycaught up with the filmmaker, who doesn’t think that neither he norWill Smithwill be involved with any future Men in Black sequels in any way. In fact, the only way he thinks the franchise can survive is if they ditch this concept of aJump Streetcrossover, focusing on new adventures with a different cast of characters. Here’s what the filmmaker had to say below.
“I wish there were a fourth film. I don’t think Will Smith nor I would be involved. But I love the franchise, because I developed it and created it. But I think the problem with making a fourth film, for a while they were talking about combining21 Jump Streetand Men in Black, [is] there are too many expensive players in the mix. There’sSteven Spielberg, there’s other producers, and I think the way to do it is to have new agents or something like that. Not have me, not have Will, not haveTommy (Lee Jones). Just have other adventures. I wish they would do it, I don’t know if they will.”
Before thisMIB 23crossover came about, producersWalter ParkesandLaurie MacDonaldrevealed in 2015 that there is a newMen in Black trilogyin development, that won’t featureWill Smith,Tommy Lee Jonesor any of the original cast members.Laurie MacDonaldalso revealed in another 2015 interview that there will be a strong female lead, but then in the spring of 2016, Sony confirmed thatMIB 23is moving forward, although we haven’t had any updates in several months. When asked about the project in August,Jonah Hillhad this to say, shedding doubt on whether it will ever see the light of day.
“I had the idea. But I doubt that movie will get made. It’s too complicated. They’re trying to make all the deals, but it’s kind of impossible with all the Men in Black stuff. TheJump Streetfilms were so fun to make and the whole joke of them was they were making fun ofremakes and sequels and rebootsand then now it’s become a giant sequel, reboot. It’s almost become what we were making fun of and it’s hard to maintain that joke when it’s so high stakes. I loveChanningand I love (directors)Phil LordandChris Millerand I love making those movies, they’re a lot of fun. So I hope it works out.”
It isn’t known if directorJames Bobinis still attached to directMIB 23, or if the studio is still developingRodney Rothman’s screenplay. The firstMen in Blackmovie hit theaters in 1997, just one year afterWill Smith’s smash hitIndependence Day. The movie earned $250.6 million domestic and $589.3 million worldwide from a $90 million budget. The second movie, 2002’sMen in Black II, dropped slightly, earning $190.4 million domestically and $441.8 million worldwide from a $140 million budget, while the third movie, 2012’sMIB 3, faltered even more domestically, earning $179 million, but it fared much better overseas, with a global haul of $624 million, from a whopping $225 million budget.
