Recommendations of the Editorial team
The story of the American action comedy “Rush Hour” starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker goes back 30 years. It was conceived and shot in the mid-1990s. In 1998, the turbulent “buddy cop” material was released in cinemas. This was followed by the globally successful sequels “Rush Hour 2” (2001) and “Rush Hour 3” (2007). In 2016 there was a US television series based on the films. A well-told subject, one would think.
But now several US industry reports, including the online service of the business broadcaster CNBC, are reporting that there will be a “Rush Hour 4”. According to reports, President Donald Trump personally urged Paramount Skydance to revive the franchise.
In the name of director Brett Ratner, whose career has been almost at a standstill since 2017 after various allegations of sexual misconduct circulated.
CNBC notes that it is highly unusual for a sitting US president to actively influence major film productions.
Explosive timing in the midst of studio struggles
The timing could hardly be more explosive: Paramount, Comcast and Netflix are currently fighting over the takeover of the ailing Warner Bros. Discovery group. Now Paramount and Warner Bros. have to agree on a rare revenue sharing model that makes a sequel to the slapstick classic possible.
According to industry insider Matthew Belloni, Paramount has secured financing and has already worked out a distribution agreement with Warner Bros/Discovery.
The fact that the studios shied away from “Rush Hour 4” for years was mainly due to director Ratner’s scandal allegations, which were never legally prosecuted but were career-devastating. Then President Trump came into play.
Ratner himself was recently vaguely rehabilitated when he was responsible for a million-dollar documentary film about First Lady Melania Trump for Amazon Prime in 2024.
A global phenomenon of the early 2000s
“Rush Hour” was once a global phenomenon: the first three parts grossed more than $850 million. They made Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker global stars. Now aged 71, Chan has slowed down his output. Tucker hasn’t played in the blockbuster league since 2007.
And so Hollywood observers are asking themselves: Can a classic buddy cop film still work in 2026?
Trump’s influence on the entertainment industry
Donald Trump has repeatedly tried to exert his influence on the entertainment industry in recent years. Often in the circle of prominent supporters such as Sylvester Stallone, Jon Voight and Mel Gibson, he advocates a return to what he describes as “classic masculinity” in cinema. “Rush Hour 4” could thus become another example of a politically flanked return to macho-driven cultural formats.
For an international audience – and especially the Chinese market, which once contributed significantly to the success of the series – the question remains how such a film should be positioned in 2026. The geopolitical mood has changed radically since the early 2000s.
Immense economic dimensions
The economic dimensions behind this sequel are immense: Warner Bros/Discovery is currently preparing its own break-up into “units” or an overall takeover. Paramount itself wants to buy the company in one piece and has made an offer that was estimated at $23.50 per share.
At the same time, Comcast and Netflix are also interested. A poker that could permanently change the balance of power in Hollywood.
Paramount also plans to almost double its annual film production – to up to 18 films from 2028. In this context, “Rush Hour 4” seems less like a nostalgic prestige project and more like a strategic content asset in the midst of a trillion-dollar competition for licenses, brands and catalogs.
A seismograph for cinema and cultural markets
What does all of this mean for the music world and the cultural sector as a whole? After all, “Rush Hour 4” is more than just another sequel in a market dominated by sequels. It is an example of how pop culture, the exercise of political power and economic interests are becoming increasingly intertwined.
The film – whether it is a success or a flop – inevitably becomes a seismograph: for the future of cinema, for the global cultural markets and for the question of how much influence politics has on pop cultural narratives in the 21st century.