Ice Cube talks about the obstacles he faced in delivering the fourth and final installment of the 1995 classic Friday, revealing he had a script ready but studio execs rejected it .
The comedy was a box office success and two sequels were produced in 2000 and 2022. On track.
The NWA founding member revealed he struggled to get executives to approve the script, which would see the return of fan favorites including Deebo, Smokey and Izar.
Ice Cube recently discussed his plans for Friday on Cam Newton’s “Funky Friday” podcast.
“Like, I know what it needs to be, but they don’t,” Ice Cube asserted. “So, they’ve had a guy named Toby Emmerich in there for years, but he wouldn’t make the movie. I’m trying to get it made.
Ice Cube explains ‘Last Friday’ script
He went on to describe his vision for the film, which will see Chris Tucker return as Smokey for the first time since the original. In Ice Cube’s script, his and Mike Epps’ characters run a dispensary but are imprisoned, where they come face to face with former enemies from last Friday’s movie.
“They’re hiding from Debord in prison, they’re hiding from Damon in prison, they’re hiding from the Joker Brothers in prison,” he explained. “Then they go into rehab.”
Tucker’s character Smokey will be in charge of managing the facility. “It’s a #######rehabilitation,” he added. “He brought everyone marijuana and smoked it in the little basement.”
Despite this, Ice Cube said studio executives rejected his idea.
“They said, ‘Ah, prison isn’t funny. How can you make prison funny when you’re in jail for so long? I was like, ‘Man, you don’t know what you’re talking about,'” he recalled. “Then they came out with ‘Orange Is the New Black,’ ‘Let’s Go to Prison,’ and all these movies about it. I said, ‘See? More Hollywood executives don’t know what they’re talking about.
