Jackie Chan Kicks Butt In An Action-Packed Trilogy Coming To Netflix
The Rush Hour trilogy will soon be streaming on Netflix.
1998 was one of the greatest years for movies with the arrival of The Bride of Chucky, Halloween H2O, Practical Magic, Saving Private Ryan, Blade, and Meet Joe Black all celebrating their premieres. The year was also the kickoff to one of the most celebrated comedy action franchises of all-time, Rush Hour.
Starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, the unlikely duo quickly became a household favorite and soon, you can bring the entire trilogy into your living room as the franchise will soon be available on Netflix.
Helmed by Brett Ratner (X-Men: The Last Stand, Red Dragon), the first film introduces audiences to Chief Inspector Lee (Jackie Chan) and Detective James Carter (Chris Tucker), two very different police officers assigned to work together on a mission.
While Lee comes to LA intending to aid the police in finding a diplomat’s missing daughter, Carter has actually been tasked with babysitting Lee to ensure that he stays out of the way. Each cop has a uniquely distinct way of handling his cases, something that the other will need to learn to adjust to as they take on the gang accused of the abduction.
Along with Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, the buddy comedy feature also starred Tom Wilkinson, Tzi Ma, Rex Linn, Mark Rolston, Ken Leung, and Elizabeth Peña.
With high-flying stunts, laugh-out-loud moments, and quotable lines, Rush Hour quickly cemented itself as one of the top box office earners of 1998. By the time the film left theaters, it had raked in $244 million at the global box office against its production budget of $33-35 million.
With its major success, it’s no surprise that Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker were called back into action just three years later in Rush Hour 2. The second time around saw the tables flipped as Tucker’s Carter goes to visit Hong Kong on a vacation only to find himself pulled into an investigation alongside his good friend and peer, Chief Inspector Lee.
Joining the call sheet for the second film was Alan King, Don Cheadle, John Lone, Zhang Ziyi, Joel McKinnon Miller, Harris Yulin, Kenneth Tsang, and Roselyn Sánchez.
Again, the sequel crushed it at the global box office, making $347.3 million against its $90 million production cost.
Not only did the well-choreographed fight scenes hit hard with audiences who were thrilled to see martial arts legend Jackie Chan kicking butt around the globe but when that was mixed with the bestie chemistry that Chan and Chris Tucker oozed through their characters, it was a match made in heaven.
Unfortunately, fans would need to wait a bit longer for the third movie to arrive, with the final installment in the trilogy not opening in theaters until 2007.
While some may think that the hype surrounding Ratner’s films would have died down in the six years between the second and third title’s releases, that simply wasn’t the case. Another box office smash, Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker’s unmatched on-screen chemistry, put audiences in the seats all over again to the tune of $258.1 million at the global box office against its $125-140 million cost.
Continuing their global adventure, Rush Hour 3 saw Jackie Chan’s Inspector Lee and Chris Tucker’s Officer Carter travel to the city of love – Paris – where they took on another dangerous organization.
Rounding out the cast were Max von Sydow, Hiroyuki Sanada, Yvan Attal, Youki Kudoh, and Noémie Lenoir. Unfortunately, even though it packed a punch in sales, the film was much less popular with its fanbase and critics than the first two with plans for a fourth installment put on ice until recently.
With so many beloved franchises like Beverly Hills Cop receiving their long overdue next chapters, the time has finally come for Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker to jump back into action and tackle some more bad guys. Last year, Chan revealed at the Red Seas Film Festival that a fourth movie was officially in the works with both him and his co-star returning to their police officer roles.
While no further plot details have been revealed at this time, we fully expect plenty more high kicks and quotable one-liners to be delivered between the longtime friends and co-workers. For now, get caught up on all the action and see Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker’s magnetic energy for yourself by binging all three of the Rush Hour films when they arrive on Netflix.
