In a recent interview, Mel Gibson provided an exciting update on the development of Lethal Weapon 5, a long-anticipated sequel that he has had intentions of making for years. Attending Fan Expo Boston, Gibson shared insights into the film’s premise and how the beloved characters have evolved over time.
Character Development and New Direction
Gibson revealed that the characters we know and love are now quite different from when audiences last saw them. “They’re older. One’s retired. The other one’s on a desk job. He’s putting on too much weight, and it’s low-tech,” he said, emphasizing the shift in tone for this installment. Despite these changes, he assured fans that the film would maintain the energy and drive of a big action movie, even without the typical high-octane explosions.
A Story of Its Own
Interestingly, Gibson noted that Lethal Weapon 5 would only hark back to the previous films in a “minimal way,” presenting a narrative that stands on its own. “It’s a foot chase, right? But it’s kind of filmed like a car chase,” he explained, indicating that while the action has evolved, the focus will be more on character interactions and development.
Behind the Lens
Gibson expressed his desire to direct the film, fulfilling a wish of the original director, Richard Donner. He recalled, “Donner, God rest his soul, he said to me in this deep voice, ‘Hey kid, if I drop off the perch, you’ll take this over, won’t you?’” Gibson recognized the weight of that legacy, admitting, “When he passed away, I didn’t say anything. But apparently he had told other people that too, so they all came to me and said, ‘You direct it.’”
Continuing Donner’s Legacy
The late Richard Donner was actively working on the script for the fifth film when he passed away. Gibson shared, “Donner, when he was 90 years old, was working on the fifth, and of course he passed away in the middle. So I got together with the writer, and we completed it thinking, ‘What would Donner do?’” Marketing his confidence in the project, he stated, “I think that the fifth script is better than all of the others.” However, he also admitted that the film is currently stuck in what he described as “industrial film hell,” making it difficult to proceed.
Production Delays and Future Prospects
As for the production timeline, Gibson noted that various studio complications have held the project back. “Richard Wenk and I finished the script, and we were going to go into production, but it just never got the wheels under it,” he disclosed. He attributes the stalling to Warner Bros. facing its own challenges, suggesting that the new management under David Ellison at Paramount may eventually lift the barriers preventing the film’s progress. “Maybe they’ll take the chains off that one, and you might see that in another year or so,” Gibson speculated.
Legacy of the Franchise
The Lethal Weapon franchise originally debuted in 1987, directed by Richard Donner and featuring Gibson as Martin Riggs alongside Danny Glover as Roger Murtaugh. The success of the initial film led to several sequels—Lethal Weapon 2 (1989), Lethal Weapon 3 (1992), and Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)—and a television adaptation that aired from 2016 to 2019.
