It’s been 18 years since Rush Hour 3 came out, and most think the action comedy franchise is dead and buried. But if Donald Trump reportedly gets his way, a new Rush Hour film will be made.
Rush Hour was a blockbuster Hollywood hit for martial arts star Jackie Chan and American stand-up comedian and actor Chris Tucker. Rush Hour made $245.3 million at the global box office back in 1998 (not adjusted for inflation), with Rush Hour 2 going bigger with $347.4 million in 2001. Rush Hour 3 was considered something of a box office disappointment, with $256.5 million in 2007.
According to Semafor, the U.S. president has allegedly pressed the Ellisons to make a new Rush Hour movie at Paramount. Larry Ellison, the largest shareholder of Paramount and a prominent financial support of Trump, would be in a position to call the shots on this, assuming the company’s pursuit of Rush Hour rights holder Warner Bros. is successful. (Paramount is run by Larry Ellison’s son, David Elison.)
The Guardian reported that senior White House officials have discussed internally their preference for Paramount Skydance to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in recent weeks. If that deal goes through (we know Warner Bros. Discovery is considering bids as we speak), then Trump wants Ellison to push through a new Rush Hour film. It’s worth noting that Rush Hour director Brett Ratner made Amazon’s upcoming documentary about the first lady, Melania Trump, a project that comes after Ratner was accused of sexual misconduct in 2017 and was forced to exit the Wonder Woman franchise.
According to Semafor, Trump wants a revival of the “raucous comedies and action movies” of the late ‘80s to late ‘90s, and is said to be a fan of Jean Claude Van Damme’s 1988 film Bloodsport. Then, we get the Rush Hour bombshell:
A person directly familiar with the conversations told Semafor that the president of the United States has personally pressed the Paramount owner to revive another franchise from Ratner: Rush Hour, a buddy-cop comedy starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker that blended physical comedy, martial arts, and gags about racial stereotypes.
The White House did not respond to multiple requests for comment, Semafor said, and a representative for Paramount declined to comment.
The question now is, will Paramount acquire Warner Bros. Discovery? According to The Guardian, Paramount is positioning itself as the best bid because it would have an easier time getting through regulatory review. Other parties interested in Warner Bros. Discovery are Netflix and Comcast.
As for Rush Hour, in December 2022, Jackie Chan revealed he was in talks for Rush Hour 4. Before that, Chris Tucker had said much the same thing, adding: “It’s happening. This is gonna be the Rush of all Rushes. Jackie is ready and we want to do this so that people don’t ever forget it.”
We haven’t heard anything of the project since. Chan is now 71 years old, and Tucker is 54.
Photo by Jeremy Bembaron/Sygma/Sygma via Getty Images.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
