Richard Donner doesn’t think ‘Lethal Weapon 5’ will happen.
The 87-year-old film legend – who directed the original ‘Lethal Weapon’ in 1987 and its sequels – has been teasing the follow-up for a while now but, although he has admitted he’d love to do the fifth instalment and has a "dark" idea for it, he doesn’t think it’s going to make it on to the big screen because of Warner Bros.
Speaking on the podcast Maltin on Movies, he said: "I’m ready to do 5. It’s called ‘Lethal Finale’. It’s very dark. And we were all set to go, and now Warner Bros. is doing their old-fashioned tricks. Not Warner Bros., there’s this guy who runs the studio who’s great, but they have these people in the legal department who do the negotiating in the most counter-productive way that they should be sent to a studio and work with the producers and directors and actors, and learn what makes a film, and then negotiate. But it’s just embarrassing. …
"And it’s too bad, because there’s a wonderful writer named Channing Gibson, who wrote [Lethal Weapon 4] for me, and we have a really great story. It IS dark. But I wanted to end it on an emotional note, and I don’t think it’s gonna happen."
The first motion picture in the franchise was released in 1987 and saw two policemen, suicidal Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) and veteran Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) team up to take on a group of drug smugglers.
‘Lethal Weapon’ also starred the likes of Gary Busey, Darlene Love, Ebonie Smith and Mitchell Ryan.
Following its success, a sequel was spawned two years later in 1989 and featured Joe Pesci as Leo Getz, and Patsy Kensit also appeared, while Love reprised her role as Trish Murtaugh.
‘Lethal Weapon 3’ aired in 1992 with Pesci and Love returning to the franchise, which also featured Rene Russo as Lorna Cole.
Six years later, Chris Rock and Jet Li appeared in ‘Lethal Weapon 4’ alongside Gibson, Glover, Pesci, Russo and Love.
Richard Donner rules out Lethal Weapon 5
