The Bad Boys For Life co-directors Bilall Fallah and Adil El Arbi have revealed that Michael Bay – the director of the first two Bad Boys films – actually directed a scene in the latest instalment of the action franchise.
During an interview on CinemaBlend’s ReelBlend podcast, the two directors discussed Michael Bay’s cameo in the film as a wedding DJ and how Bay directed that scene himself which was evident as the scene uses his signature swooping 360 camera shot.
Adil El Arbi: “We were looking for a cameo as a part that he’d play. Maybe it was a guy that was going to get killed in the movie? There are two places where we play ourselves in the movie. Bilall is hitting on Rita, and my car is getting stolen by Will [Smith]. So both of these scenes were options for Michael Bay.”
Bilall Fallah: “And then we had the idea of the MC. We were thinking, ‘Okay, we got to make it a real Michael Bay shot.’ So the camera goes 360 around him.”
El Arbi: “And he turns counterclockwise with the shot!”
Fallah: “So it’s a real Michael Bay moment with Michael Bay. And he directed it himself. We were just, like, watching him direct his own shot.”
El Arbi: “Yeah, of course! When Michael Bay is there on set he just explains the steady camera, how to do it, and he knows how to turn. We didn’t tell him anything. … This shot will be studied in film school because it’s super meta!”
It would make sense that Bilall Fallah and Adil El Arbi would allow Michael Bay to direct his own cameo sequence as the two co-directors are clearly big fans of his to the point where Bad Boys For Life feels like a true homage to the first two instalments in the franchise.
SEE ALSO: Bad Boys 4 already in the works at Sony
Are you surprised Michael Bay directed a scene in Bad Boys For Life? What did you think of the film? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @flickeringmyth…
The Bad Boys Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) are back together for one last ride in the highly anticipated Bad Boys for Life.
Bad Boys for Life sees Will Smith and Martin Lawrence joined by returning cast members Joe Pantoliano (Captain Howard) and Theresa Randle (Theresa Burnett), alongside franchise newcomers Vanessa Hudgens (The Princess Switch), Alexander Ludwig (Vikings), Charles Melton (Riverdale), Jacob Scipio (Hunter Killer), Paola Nunez (The Son) and DJ Khaled (Spies in Disguise).
