Hollywood Insiders Call RUSH HOUR 4 a “Terrible Idea” as its $100 Million Budget is Revealed

The announcement that Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker are gearing up to reunite for Rush Hour 4 caught the entertainment world off guard.

After years of rumors, false starts, and studio hesitations, the project suddenly lurched forward following reports that Donald Trump encouraged Larry Ellison, father of Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison, to resurrect the franchise.

With Brett Ratner stepping back into the director’s chair, it looked like the buddy cop series was officially back in action. Now that more details have surfaced, the mood in Hollywood is far from confident.

A new report from Puck suggests that many insiders view Rush Hour 4 as a “terrible idea,” despite Ratner’s long standing hope to make it his next major directing gig.

Paramount has reportedly positioned itself only as a distributor to sidestep direct association, and Puck notes that several studios already passed on the film when Ratner attempted to shop it around. One executive who rejected the pitch even labeled it a “geriatric money play.”

Financial concerns seem to be at the center of the hesitation. Puck revealed that the movie is operating on a massive $100 million budget, with a portion of that reportedly coming from Saudi Arabia.

Variety previously mentioned that Paramount would not be covering marketing costs. Puck shared a text from Ratner that made the situation even clearer, quoting him directly. “The budget is over 100m.”

While the Rush Hour franchise has had an impressive commercial run, the landscape has changed significantly since Rush Hour 3 hit theaters. The original earned $244 million, the sequel jumped to $347 million, and the third film pulled in $256 million.

Those are solid numbers, but audiences have been away from these characters for nearly two decades. By the time Rush Hour 4 arrives, the series will be about 20 years removed from its last outing, and no one is certain whether audiences will come back.

Puck also spoke with a studio executive who has previously worked with Ratner, and his take was cautious optimism mixed with realism about the long gap between installments.

“There are certain franchises that are dead and gone and finished, but I think the passage of a significant amount of time between installments does change the calculus.”

He added that the real question is whether “there's reason to believe people still have fond feelings about characters. 'Does the global audience care?' is a different question.”

So Rush Hour 4 now sits in a strange space. There is some excitement from longtime fans who want to see Chan and Tucker banter their way through another adventure, but the industry seems unsure whether the world still wants a new chapter.

A $100 million price tag raises the stakes even higher. If the movie connects, it could be a surprising comeback story. If not, it may serve as another example of Hollywood trying to revive a franchise past its prime. For me, I have no interest in another Rush Hour movie.