Will Smith Marks 30 Years Since the First Bad Boys Movie: ‘Grateful for All the Love’

The Oscar winner is celebrating the ‘Bad Boys’ film that spawned the box office hit franchise

Will Smith is celebrating 30 years of Bad Boys!

The Men in Black star, 56, posted a joint Instagram post with costar Martin Lawrence and the franchise’s official account on Monday, April 7, marking the 30th anniversary of the action franchise’s first film.

“30 years ago @jerrybruckheimer, Don Simpson and @michaelbay took a chance on us and Bad Boys was born!! Grateful for all the love y’all have shown us thru the years 👊🏾,” the Instagram caption read.

Smith included several behind-the-scenes photos from the original film, including pictures alongside Lawrence, 59, as they smiled with one another on set. He also added photos of the film’s director, Michael Bay, and producer Jerry Bruckheimer.

Alongside photos of his costar, Smith added snapshots of the behind-the-scenes with castmates, Michael Imperioli, Joe Pantoliano, Téa Leoni and Theresa Randle.

Smith and Lawrence star as Miami detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Bennett in the franchise. After the 1995 box office hit, three more films followed: Bad Boys II in 2003, Bad Boys for Life in 2020, and more recently, Bad Boys: Ride or Die in 2024. The franchise has earned $1.2 billion at the box office across all four films, per Collider. 

Last year, Smith detailed filming the first installment, and revealed the process behind his audition call.

“I was 25 years old. Marty Mar was 29. Just two kids – who lucked out and got to live their dreams on the first try,” he wrote in the June 2024 Instagram caption, adding that Lawrence’s sister convinced her brother to ask Smith to audition for the role of Mike.

“I was hooked. ‘Let’s go! When can I read the script?’ Marty Mar’s face scrunched up. ‘Nawww – you can’t big Willie. The script’s not there yet. You just gotta trust me and commit,’ ” he wrote.

Smith’s caption continued, “But it was my shot to work with w comedic genius like Martin – so I said, ‘you know what? F%## it. I’m in.’ And the rest is history.”

At the Los Angeles premiere of Bad Boys: Ride or Die in June 2024, Bruckheimer told PEOPLE that there was “never a dull moment” working with the acting duo on set.

“They’re creative and fun. They’re so great to work with,” he said at the L.A. premiere. “There’s never any arguments, we just have a blast going through the process, and it’s a long process to get these made.”

The first two Bad Boys films are available to stream on both Hulu and Peacock. The third, Bad Boys for Life, is available on Hulu, and the fourth, Bad Boys: Ride or Die, is available on Netflix.