Columbia Stokes The Fire For ‘Bad Boys 3′

Michael Bay has said he’d likely leave the world of “Transformers” behind for a while, but that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t revisit another old friend: the Will Smith / Martin Lawrence buddy copy action porn known as “Bad Boys.”

The Hollywood Reporter says that the first pieces are being put into place for a third “Bad Boys” movie, with Columbia Pictures hiring Peter Craig to write the screenplay. The hope is that a quality screenplay will bring Bay, Smith, Lawrence and producer Jerry Bruckheimer to the table to make the sequel happen.

All four have said that they’d be interested in coming back to “Bad Boys.” Smith mentioned an idea he had for a sequel backstage at the 2008 MTV Movie Awards, but added, “Michael (Bay) is too expensive now. He’s way too expensive.”

The two “Bad Boys” films have grossed $415 million worldwide, made Smith a bona fide action star, and Bay a Hollywood tentpole mainstay.