Ice Cube is opening up about the obstacles he faced to deliver the long-awaited fourth and final installment of his 1995 cult classic movie Friday, revealing he had a script ready to go but studio executives rejected it.
The comedy was a box office success and produced two sequels in 2000 and 2022. Earlier this year, Ice Cube promised fans that Last Friday was back on track following leadership changes at Warner Brothers.
The NWA founding member revealed he struggled to get executives to approve the script, which would see the returns of fan-favorites including Deebo, Smokey and Ezal.
Ice Cube discussed his plans for Last Friday during a recent appearance on Cam Newton’s “Funky Friday” podcast.
“Like, I know what it needs to be, and they don’t,” Ice Cube asserted. “So, they had a guy in there named Toby Emmerich for years, and he wouldn’t make the movie. I was trying to get it made.”
Ice Cube Explains “Final Friday” Script
He went on to describe his vision for the film, which would see Chris Tucker return as Smokey for the first time since the original. In Ice Cube’s script, his and Mike Epps’ characters are running a dispensary but are thrown in jail where they come face to face with former enemies for past Friday movies.
“They in jail ducking Debo, they in jail ducking Damon, they in jail ducking the Joker Brothers,” he explained. “Then they get into a rehab.”
Tucker’s character Smokey would be running the facility. “It was a b####### rehab,” he added. “He was taking everybody weed and smoking it in the little basement.”
Nonetheless, Ice Cube said studio executives rejected his idea.
“They was like, ‘Ah, jail’s not funny. It’s too much time in jail. How can you make jail funny?’ I’m like, ‘Man, y’all don’t know what the f### y’all talking about,’” he recalled. “Then they come out with Orange Is The New Black, Let’s Go To Prison, all these movies about that. And I’m like, ‘See? More Hollywood execs don’t know what the f### they’re talking about.’”
