Theresa Randle’s time in the ‘Bad Boys’ film franchise has reportedly come to an end, decades after she starred in the first film.
Variety reported Wednesday that actress Tasha Smith (“Empire,” “For Better or Worse”) will replace Randle as Theresa, the devoted wife of Martin Lawrence’s Marcus Burnett in the upcoming “Bad Boys 4.” Variety reported this week.
Sony and representatives for Smith did not respond to The Times’ requests for confirmation Friday.
“Bad Boys” stars Lawrence and Will Smith confirmed that the fourth film is in the works earlier this year. The duo made their Bad Boys debut as Miami detectives Mike Lowery (Will Smith) and Burnett (Lawrence) in 1995.
The first film made $65.8 million at the worldwide box office. 2003 saw the release of the sequel, Bad Boys II, which grossed $273.3 million worldwide. More than a decade later, Smith and Lawrence returned for “Bad Boys for Life,” which grossed $426.5 million worldwide.
During her tenure as Teresa, Randle delivered fierce one-liners for the title antics of the twins and her husband suspected infidelity.
“I’m here to kill my husband,” she said in one film.
In a Interview 2020 on “Bad Boys for Life,” Randle reflected on the dynamic Theresa shares with Mike and Marcus.
“He still laughs at both of them because they want to be so grown up, so mature. He’s still the same Mike and Marcus he’s always been known for,” he said. “And he still has to get in between them. Nothing has really changed.”
News of Randle’s replacement comes as fans expressed concern for her well-being. The video of the actor using a walker and wearing purple latex gloves recently made the rounds on social media.
Randle could not be reached for comment, and her former manager and journalist Roger Neal told The Times on Friday that he did not know the context of the video as he had “not been in touch with her for years”.
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