Chris Tucker has revealed that he did not return to the Friday franchise because he wanted to distance himself from people who smoke weed.
The actor, known for roles in Rush Hour and The Fifth Element, also starred in the 1995 stoner comedy Friday alongside Ice Cube. Fans of the film hoped to see Tucker in the film’s two sequels – Next Friday and Friday After Next.
“Back then, I gotta tell you, one of the reasons why I didn’t do the second one was because of the weed,” he told All Urban Central.
“I said, man, that movie became a phenomenon. I don’t want everybody smoking weed and I never really told people this because I kind of forgot about it, but it was one of the reasons why I didn’t do it. Because I said, ‘I don’t wanna represent everybody smoking weed.'”
He added: “I didn’t wanna keep doing that character. It probably was good for me because it kept me moving to the next phase and next movies.”
However, the comedian hasn’t written off returning to the films altogether, and said that he would “definitely consider” it in the future.
“I always said, because I know my fans love the movies so much [and] they always bring it up, I said, well, if they come to me with a great script and a great idea, I’d definitely consider it. But it’s been so long ago and that character became such a great character. I don’t wanna mess it up.”
In February, Ice Cube alleged that Warner Bros. had “hi-jacked” the Friday film franchise and was blocking any future sequels.
Taking to the social media, he posted an animated image of the film’s original cast alongside a blunt caption that accused the studio of not green lighting further films.
“#freefriday from the jaws of Warner Bros. who refuses to make more sequels. They have hi-jacked the happiness of the culture,” the post reads.