'Bad Boys 3': Joe Pantoliano to Return as Captain Howard

Actor Joe Pantoliano will return as fan-favorite character, Captain Conrad Howard for the next Bad Boys film.

According to Deadline, Pantoliano has signed on to join Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys 3 (Bad Boys for Life), which begins filming in January.

The new film is written by Peter Craig (Bad Boys 2, Transformers), Joe Carnahan (A-Team), and Chris Bremmer. It is directed by Adil El-Arbi and Bilall Fallah (FX's Snowfall, 2015's Black).

Pantoliano previously spoke his work in the franchise during an interview that took place around the time Bad Boys II was released in 2003.

"It worked out so well. I think it's an even better film than the first. It sure is a lot of fun," he said of the sequel, as reported by WebWombat. "We're all a little older now, being seven years on, Michael has had his five hit pictures since, Martin's got a great part, Will's just terrific — it all worked out wonderfully."

"We really capitalised on the elements of the first film with the guys getting into trouble and then me having to get them out of it. Of course, this time there's a twist — Martin and I are both in Anger Management classes," he continued.

Pantoliano then went on to praise producer Jerry Bruckheimer, saying, "When you work for Bruckheimer, you don't get it any better."

"He's the ultimate producer. I've had the good fortune of working with some great producers over the years — but Bruckheimer is just great," he also said. "He's a very creative, inclusive producer. He involves you in everything. For instance, any scene that even mentioned my character Captain Howard I was brought in to be part of the rehearsals. Whether you like the film or not, you can't say it wasn't a very conclusive one."

Bad Boys II was not considered a critical hit, which is something Pantoliano knew would happen, and he took the opportunity to call them out ahead of its premiere.

"I know critics don't give films this like a good wrap; thing is, in private some have come up to me afterwards and told me they honestly really enjoyed the movie. Then they'd tell me that they're still going to have to write it up negatively though — and apologise," he shared. "Most really enjoy the movie. I think it's such a thrilling ride. The two guys — Martin and Will are like today's Hepburn and Tracy. They've got such good chemistry."

Bad Boys for Life is scheduled to open in theaters on Jan. 17, 2020.