“The movie has great ingredients – not only our story with James trying to discourage Ben from joining his line of work, but there is also this family element with his Ben’s relationship with James’ sister,” said Ice Cube, one of the stars of the film “Ride Along 2.”
The sequel to the $150 million box office smash starring Cube and Kevin Hart hits theatres next Friday (January 15), and the two made a stop in St. Louis on their promo trail to talk about why the “Ride Along” franchise is even better the second time around.
“So you combine these two great flavors of movies and it’s like action/comedy and this crazy romance that’s going on,” Cube said. “It has so many great elements.”
The film picks up where the complicated dynamic left off. Hart’s character Ben Barber seeks an in on his lifetime ambition of becoming a police officer by way of his girlfriend Angela’s (Tika Sumpter) older brother, Atlanta detective James Payton.
Ben has earned his way onto the police force, but once again inserts himself into James’ case to advance his career.
On screen, Ice Cube is the consummate straight man while Hart delivers his now signature brand of slapstick physical comedy.
But in real life, their roles are somewhat reversed. Though cordial, Hart rarely cracked a smile when speaking of the work that went into “Ride Along 2” – especially when referring to his admiration for Cube’s contribution to the entertainment industry and how he has long considered the rapper/actor/producer/director one of his role models.
“His portfolio and what he’s done and maintained grounded through it all,” Hart said. “You’re looking at a guy who is not content with any level of success, and that’s something that I love. To constantly break down doors to go through new doors, I love to be a student of that. This is a guy who I’ve looked at when I first came into this business, and I’ve soaked up as much information as I could.”
He also spoke sincerely about the friendship that bloomed out of the work.
“I’ve spent real time with the guy, and the level of respect that I had for him has gone up and beyond,” Hart said. “We want the best for each other, and that spills over into our projects.”
“We are always refining the work and trying to make it better than what’s already on the page and just keep that bar up,” Cube said.
Their friendship and commitment to the work is topped off by a chemistry that Cube calls “seamless.”
“We told Ken Jeong, ‘We’ve got a great thing going on here. Don’t mess it up. Don’t blow this for us,’” Cube said.
Jeong, who made a name for himself as the hilarious villain in “The Hangover” franchise, joins Benjamin Bratt and Olivia Munn to round out “Ride Along 2.”
Hart said, “We’ve had a group of new people come in with us and they’ve all said the same thing – they said, ‘This is the most fun that we’ve had. This has been such a good time. It didn’t even feel like work.’”
Cube attributes some of that atmosphere to director Tim Story.
“Dude is so laid back. To be honest, I don’t know how he gets anything done,” Cube said. “But seriously, I’ve never worked with a director who can keep that cool, laid-back flavor throughout the movie. He’s the same way every time I’ve seen him – cool, calm and collected and he’s done some of the best movies. And he does it without ever raising his voice.”
Story’s return – as well as the addition of Will Packer to the list of producers that also includes Cube – means “Ride Along 2” features blacks in the lead both in front of and behind the camera, yet the film is being marketed to the masses.
“It’s so cool for Universal [Studios] to not see color and push it as a mainstream movie,” Cube said. “It just shows how things are changing to the point where, if you do good work, it don’t matter who’s behind it as long as you have the right attitude – and product.”
Ride Along 2 opens in theatres nationwide on Friday, January 15 with previews on Thursday, January 14. The film is rated PG-13.
