After years of waiting and uncertainty, the Rush Hour franchise might finally be gearing up for its long-awaited fourth instalment. The request to bring the famous action-comedy franchise back to life came from none other than the US President Donald Trump. Filmmaker Brett Ratner, who directed the previous films, will be helming the project.
Paramount is reportedly on board to distribute the upcoming installment of the buddy-cop drama, which will feature the OG pair of Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. Rush Hour 4 faced delays previously, as the director was accused of sexual misconduct or harassment in 2017 amid Hollywood’s #MeToo movement.
Actresses, including Olivia Munn and Natasha Henstridge, had accused him of wrongdoing, which Brett eventually
denied. Following the accusations, no major studio wanted to take on the film. For a long time, it seemed like Rush Hour 4 might never happen.
Donald Trump Asked Larry Ellison To Support The Film
According to a Semafor report, things changed after the president stepped in to help Brett revive the popular cop drama. Donald Trump reportedly asked his friend and political supporter, Larry Ellison, the main shareholder of Paramount Skydance, to support the film. Now, Paramount has reportedly arranged the financing for the movie and worked out a distribution agreement with Warner Bros., the original studio behind the successful franchise.
“The president is offering some creative input on potential upcoming projects… Trump appears to want to revive the raucous comedies and action movies of the late 1980s to late 1990s,” the aforementioned outlet reported.
Meanwhile, Brett Ratner returned to directing with a $40 million documentary about Melania Trump, the first lady of the US. The project, made for Amazon MGM Studios, owned by Jeff Bezos, is set to hit the theatres in January 2026.
What Did Jackie Chan Say Previously About Rush Hour 4?
Prior to this update, Jackie Chan spoke with ScreenRant on the red carpet of Karate Kids: Legends, and shared that he is still interested in working with Chris even 25 years after the first Rush Hour film was released. The actor jokingly told the outlet, “Ask the director, ask the studio, ask the writer. Hurry up! Otherwise, Chris Tucker and me [will be] 100 years old. We’ll be old men doing Rush Hour.”
FYI, the first three Rush Hour movies were a massive success, earning a combined $850 million worldwide. The first film of the franchise premiered in 1998, followed by the second one in 2001 and the third film in 2007.
