Release Date: Unknown; that will depend upon when (if) filming actually does get started.

Release Date Note: (6/11/00) If the gap between 3 and 4 gives a hint, it would suggest six years, which puts this one in 2004, if of course, this movie gets made at all.

Title Note: If the last film gives any indication, this could have the iconic alternate title of LW5.

Distributor: Warner Bros.

Production Company: Joel Silver Films; most likely Richard Donner would produce as well.

Cast: None announced yet.

Possible Returning Cast: Mel Gibson (Det. Martin Riggs), Danny Glover (Det. Roger Murtaugh), Chris Rock (Det. Lee Butters), Rene Russo (Lorna Cole), Traci Wolfe (Rianne), Joe Pesci (Leo Getz)

Danny Glover Note: In January, 1999, Gene Siskel reported on Siskel & Ebert that Danny Glover told him that he's definitely not returning... though I think it's likely he'd still do a cameo, if even just to pass on the baton, so to speak. Even if he refused to return at all, I think it's still possible the series could go on without him (perhaps Lethal Weapon 5 would start with a funeral?). In that case, you'd probably see Chris Rock fill his shoes (see ideas below).

Director: Richard Donner (director of the first four Lethal Weapon films, The Goonies, Superman, Maverick, The Conspiracy Theory)

Screenwriter: Not announced yet.

Based Upon: This will be the fifth in the series that started with Lethal Weapon in 1987, followed by sequels in 1989, 1992, and 1998. Each movie in this definitive "buddy cop" series is another adventure of the team of Los Angeles police detectives Riggs and Murtagh.

Premise: There are currently no known details about this next film in the series.

Possible Premises: However, one thing that was firmly established in LW4 is that Lee Butters (Chris Rock) is likely to return. Another likelihood is that either Riggs or Murtaugh (most likely; especially considering Glover's expressed interest in not coming back) will retire in the next film, which might mean Butters would then team up with whichever older detective is still on the force. Another possibility is that both Riggs and Murtaugh could settle into retirement (or desk jobs), and the series would bring in another partner for Butters, though I would guess that option is probably more likely for LW6. Even if that last scenario did happen, I think it's likely that Riggs and Murtaugh would still be around for the fun, perhaps to come in at the end, say they're really getting too old for this, etc.

Filming: There is no production date for this movie, and no firm indication whether it will be made at all... though it's certainly possible given the success of LW4, which made nearly $130 million in the USA, for a global gross of over $265 million. As to when filming would start, LW4 nearly set a record on this, starting filming in early January, 1998, and making it to the theaters by that July, a mere six months later. In other words, whenever a deal is made for Lethal Weapon 5, the movie could be in theaters the next summer after that.

Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime

Status: In Development