After almost 17 years, the Bad Boys – Miami detective Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) finally return to the big screen in Bad Boys For Life. Given how long it has been since audiences last saw them, it would only make sense for this long-awaited sequel to reward its long-time fans.
The third chapter in the Bad Boys series does through several shout-outs and callbacks to the events of the previous two movies, which sharp-eyed fans will pick up. Listed here are the coolest ones that we could spot, although we’re pretty sure more will reveal themselves upon a rewatch or two. Without further delay, these are the ten best Easter Eggs (so far) you may have missed in Bad Boys For Life.
Gabriella’s Got A Gun
Unless it’s Marcus, Mike would rather not accept help from any other cop. This is why he initially dismisses Advanced Miami Metro Operations (AMMO) as a “high school musical boy band with guns.” This may not sound like much, but the choice of words is too obvious to be coincidental.
Among AMMO’s recruits is Kelly, portrayed by Vanessa Hudgens. Hudgens just so happens to be best known for starring as Gabriella Montez in the High School Musical movies, which launched her into stardom.
Underwater Contraband
To get a financial headstart on his revenge, Armando follows the coordinates given to him by his mother. This leads him to a crate filled to the brim with his father’s emergency money stash, which was thrown into the ocean to keep it out of the authorities’ reach.
This isn’t the first time that contraband was hidden in the ocean to avoid capture. In fact, this was the very same method used by the drug lord Johnny Tapia in Bad Boys II, where his cohorts would hide drugs in coffins that they would then throw into the ocean for their associates to fish out later.
“Bad Boys For Life”
Mike and Marcus are such close friends that they even made up a mantra for their undying brotherhood. This is where the third movie’s title comes from, as the full quote goes “We ride together. We die together. Bad boys for life.”
Older viewers will remember these exact words from Bad Boys II, where they’re shown written on Mike’s yearbook page before he says it word for word in the movie’s finale. The quote has now become so well-known among their friends that it became a clan motto of sorts, as proven by it being said in unison with Mike during Megan’s wedding.
Captain Howard Sucks At Basketball
One of Capt. Howard’s defining scenes in the original Bad Boys has him shooting hoops in his free time. The only problem is, he sucks at it and misses every single shot. Sadly, this is apparently something genetic – which he confirms in the third movie.
Looking for some advice, Mike hangs out with his captain at a basketball game. Here, the captain’s daughter is also playing ball but, like her father, misses every shot. This is where Capt. Howard reveals his family’s very specific curse to Mike, lamenting how it’s an unavoidable fate. Thankfully, this doesn’t stop him from rooting for his daughter.
Marcus’ Awkward Talks
While staking out one of Armando’s associates in a nightclub, Marcus (ill-advisedly) decides that this is the perfect place to rants to Mike about his non-existent sex life. He does so without realizing that all of AMMO can hear him through their radios.
By sheer bad luck, this is the second time Marcus’ sex life (or lack thereof) was heard by more than just Mike. In Bad Boys II, Marcus talks about his erectile dysfunction in an electronics shop, not realizing that the cameras in front of him and Mike were broadcasting their conversation to every TV in the store. Arguably, the video store incident was worse but both times were pretty embarrassing.
Marcus The Peacemaker
When Mike gets gunned down during Armando’s first hit, Marcus swears to God that he’ll dedicate himself to a life of peace if his best friend makes it through. Mike survives, and so Marcus retires and (temporarily) tries to broker peace before shooting people.
Previously in Bad Boys II, Marcus also tried to repress his violent impulses. But just like the “Woosah” mantra he learned from his anger management sessions, his well-intentioned attempts to penetrate a man’s soul with his heart fail miserably in the new movie. Mike has to convince Marcus that firing a machine gun was God’s will before the two end the movie by laughing at the idea of taking therapy.
The Bad Boys’ Anger Barometer
After Mike drops of Marcus Jr. at the spa – much to the chagrin of Mrs. Burnett – Marcus asks him to rate her anger. The two determine that a numerical scale is too vague, so they try comparing it to Marcus’ when he found that Mike broke up with his sister Syd. This finally reveals what happened after Bad Boys II, which ended by hinting that Mike and Syd could be on their way to starting a relationship.
They settle on comparing Theresa’s anger to that of Mike’s when his Ferrari got busted. This may be a shout-out to Bad Boys II again, where Mike’s fancy Ferrari 550 got banged up during that sequel’s explosive freeway chase. Either way, the conclusion remains the same: Theresa’s pissed as hell.
Marcus’ Butt
Appalled by Marcus’ claim that he outran him, Mike challenges his partner to a quick race on the street. While warming up, Marcus off-handedly mentions that his butt still isn’t feeling right even years after his wound there healed.
Those who’ve seen Bad Boys II know that Marcus’ booty was one of the major casualties of that sequel, as it got caught in the crossfire of the opening gunfight. Making matters worse is that it was Mike’s bullet that penetrated Marcus’ rear. Marcus’ injury was so bad that it affected his sex life and self-esteem, both of which got better after he accidentally ingested some ecstasy.
Reggie’s Back
Back in Bad Boys II, Mike and Marcus intimidate Megan’s date Reggie the way movie dads always do: cursing, playing tough, showing off a gun, etc. It would be safe to assume that this is the first and last time Reggie ever visits the Burnetts’ but as it turns out, he stuck around and proved to be a keeper.
During the marriage ceremony, Mike gives a speech in honor of Reggie (still portrayed by Dennis Greene), where he fondly recollects their aggressive first encounter with the boy who grew up to be a marine. But believe it or not, this isn’t the movie’s most surprising cameo because that honor goes to…
Michael Bay, The Wedding MC
When it was confirmed that Bad Boys For Life wouldn’t be directed by Michael Bay, the fanbase was split. Some were happy that the next movie would get a new direction, while others were sad that the signature Bayhem would be gone. Bay doesn’t even have a producer credit. But much to everyone’s surprise, Bay found a way to show up in the continuation of his first major Hollywood movie.
During Reggie and Megan’s wedding, Bay appears as the ceremony’s MC and introduces none other than Mike Lowrey to the excited crowd. This is both fitting and heartwarming because through his directorial debut Bad Boys, Bay arguably helped introduce a young Will Smith to the blockbuster-loving world.
