Bad Boys 3: Will Smith returns as Mike Lowery in new video as filming begins on long-awaited sequel

Michael Bay won't be directing the new film which sees the duo return 15 years later

It’s good news for Bad Boys fans – cameras have officially begun rolling on the next film in the action series.

After years of false starts, production has finally commenced in Atlanta with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence returning as the narcotics detectives 15 years after they last played them.

A video posted to Instagram seems to show Smith back in the role of Mike Lowery, days after revealing he binged the first two films with Lawrence in preparation for the sequel.

The synopsis for the new film reads: “Miami PD and its elite AMMO team attempt to take down Armando Armas (Jacob Scipio), head of a drug cartel. Armando is a cold-blooded killer with a vicious, taunting nature. He is committed to the work of the cartel and is dispatched by his mother to kill Mike (Will Smith).

In November 2018, a video confirming the new film racked up more than 6m views and 96,000 comments in under 24 hours.

Original director Michael Bay won’t be returning. Instead, it’ll be overseen by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah.

Bad Boys was one of Smith’s first major cinematic successes, grossing $141.4 million from a $19 million budget despite middling reviews. The sequel, released eight years later, had a much higher budget ($130 million) and grossed $273.3 million at the box office.

Bad Boys for Life will be released 17 January 2020.