Famous Director Exits Big Netflix Movie Over ‘Creative Differences’ With Will Smith

A major director has exited an upcoming Netflix movie following creative differences with the star.

According to Deadline, Michael Bay will no longer be working on the streamer’s action film Fast and Loose.

Last October, it was reported that the famed filmmaker was in talks to direct the Will Smith-led movie. Fast and Loose centers on a man (Smith) who wakes up in Tijuana with no memories, and as he pieces together his past, he learns he’s been living two lives: one as a crime kingpin and the other as an undercover CIA agent. The script is by Jon Hoeber, Eric Hoeber, Chris Bremner, and Eric Pearson, with the movie having action and some comic moments. Reportedly, though, Bay wanted more emphasis on the action, while Smith wanted more comedy.

Production is eyeing to start in October, with Netflix focusing on finding a filmmaker until then. Bay and Smith first worked together on 1995’s Bad Boys, which marked Bay’s directorial debut and launched Smith as an action film star. At the very least, Bay may no longer be working on Fast and Loose, but he is staying busy. He’s in talks with Paramount for a new Transformers movie and is also working on an adaptation of the video game OutRun at Universal, starring Sydney Sweeney.

Fast or Loose will mark Smith’s latest Netflix project. He previously starred in 2017’s Bright, directed by David Ayer, and hosted the 2021 limited series Amend: The Fight for America. As for Bay, his only Netflix film is the 2019 Ryan Reynolds-led action adventure flick 6 Underground. Just like Bay, Smith has also been pretty busy. He served as an executive producer on Netflix’s Cobra Kai, which came to an end earlier this year, and was the producer and star of 2024’s Bad Boys: Ride or Die. He has a lot of projects in the works on both his acting and producing side, so Fast and Loose is far from the only film he’s working on.

As of now, additional information on Fast and Loose has not been revealed, but it’s likely details will be announced once Netflix locks down a new director, whenever that is. It’s unknown what will happen if the streamer is unable to find a new director before filming starts, but production will likely just be pushed back. Nothing is confirmed, though.