Lawrence Lamont, whose “One of Them Days” was one of the more pleasant low-key surprises of early 2025, has been tapped by New Line to direct “Last Friday,” the fourth instalment of the “Friday” franchise. The last film was released 25 years ago.
Ice Cube, who co-created the series, is writing the script, producing and, of course, set to star. No word yet on whether Mike Epps' Day-Day or Chris Tucker's Smokey will be back. Sadly, John Witherspoon, who played Pops, passed away in 2019.
This has been a passion project. For nearly 12 years, Cube has been publicly fighting to get this made, at one point complaining that New Line was slow to greenlight his script. He finally got what he wanted when new Warner leadership came in, specifically his old New Line ally Mike De Luca, who greenlit the movie.
Lamont is a smart get. “One of Them Days,” starring Keke Palmer and SZA, cost $14M and grossed $51M. Not only that, but in my review I pointed out how the film played like a female version of “Friday.” Handing the reins to a director who just proved he can make a hangout comedy feel fresh again might be the best decision New Line has made with this property in years.
It keeps getting worse for Jafar Panahi. The Palme d'Or-winning director of "It Was Just an Accident" has been sentenced by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court to five years in prison.