Ice Cube & New Line Cinema Have Found Their ‘Last Friday’ Director

The latest installment of the Friday franchise is finally in the works, with Ice Cube and co-star Mike Epps confirming their involvement in the project. The movie, titled Last Friday, will explore the theme of gentrification, according to recent reports. The duo has been hinting at the possibility for a couple of years now, with Ice Cube telling Flavor Flav in 2024 that negotiations with Warner Bros. were gaining traction and Epps revealing the film's green-light status back in March 2025.

New Line Cinema's boss, Richard Brener, has now officially announced that they are moving forward with the project, stating, "We are making another Friday. We just closed a deal with Ice Cube to write and star. It's going to be called Last Friday." It was previously reported that Mike Epps and Ice Cube appeared on Entertainment Tonight and expressed optimism about Chris Tucker potentially returning as Smokey, the role that launched his acting career.

Lawrence Lamont, who recently directed Keke Palmer and SZA in One of Them Days, is set to helm the film. The movie will be shot in Southern California over a 40-day period with a budget of $11.4 million, thanks to a California production incentive program. Featuring a cast of 43 and a crew of 150, Last Friday will be set to premiere nearly 25 years after the release of the original 1995 film, which has since become a classic.