Over a decade and a half have passed since the initial movie theatre release of Rush Hour 3, but it would appear that things are finally starting to look bright for the interminably delayed fourth sequel of the blockbuster franchise.
Jackie Chan, a famed action performer, recently made an appearance at the Red Sea Film Festival (via Deadline), where he announced that the production of Rush Hour 4 is currently in the early phases of development.
Discussions concerning the script are still underway at this time. Chan has also disclosed that the project is already in the process of recruiting a director for it.
Since 2012, there have been persistent rumors about the production of a fourth installment of the Rush Hour film series.
The film’s two main stars, Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker have consistently stated their eagerness to return to their respective iconic roles as Inspector Lee and Officer Carter throughout the years.
More information on the prospective fourth installment is, for the time being, being withheld from public view.
In addition, it is unknown whether or not Brett Ratner, who helmed the first three movies in the series, is also attached to the project.
The first film in the Rush Hour franchise was released in 1998, and it told the story of an unlikely friendship between a Hong Kong detective and a Los Angeles Police Department officer.
After a successful run in theatres, it was followed by two additional installments in the franchise, which brought in a total of more than $840 million at the box office around the world.
Tzi Ma, Tom Wilkinson, Ken Leung, Roselyn Sánchez, Philip Baker Hall, Hiroyuki Sanada, Max von Sydow, Aimee Garcia, and Noémie Lenoir were among the other actors who appeared in the series alongside Chan and Tucker.
Jackie Chan’s Rush Hour Legacy
The fact that the legendary actor, who was just recently presented with an honorary Academy Award in recognition of his accomplishments across his whole career, is personally involved in the early production of Rush Hour 4 is a positive sign that things are moving in the right direction.
First and foremost, he and Tucker both reprised their roles from the first Rush Hour film that was released in 1998 in both of the films that followed it.
When Chan’s character, Detective Inspector Lee of the Royal Hong Kong Police Force, is dispatched to Los Angeles to investigate the case of the theft of the consul’s daughter, he works alongside Tucker’s character, the disgraced Detective James Carter of the Los Angeles Police Department.
He’s indeed half of a renowned buddy team, but Jackie Chan’s impact on the franchise extends much beyond simply appearing in the movies themselves.
For example, he worked both in front of and behind the camera in the sequel, working as the action director for the film Rush Hour 2 which was released in 2001.
However, his impact on the films in the Rush Hour franchise stretches far beyond that particular aspect of the franchise.
Without all of the hard work that Chan has put in throughout his career, from the very beginning in Hong Kong in the 1970s, it would not be possible for the Rush Hour films to deal with the special blend of action and comedy that they do.
He devoted himself to establishing his one-of-a-kind combination of slapstick comedy and martial arts in classic films such as 1978’s Drunken Master and 1985’s Police Story.
This method of filmmaking would later seep over into his American works such as 2002’s The Tuxedo and 2010s The Spy Next Door.
The fact that he is so involved in Rush Hour 4 gives us reason to hope that, should production on the picture go on as planned, it will be able to measure up to the standards set by the two previous Rush Hour movies thanks to the direction that he will provide.