Three decades after the original Friday hit theaters in 1995, the franchise remains a cornerstone of comedy culture—and according to Ice Cube, the Jones family isn’t done yet. In a recent conversation, the hip-hop icon and filmmaker opened up about the progress of the long-awaited fourth installment, how the project will navigate the loss of several beloved cast members, and the one comedian who never fails to make him laugh.
The Legacy of ‘Friday’ and Status of the Fourth Film
For Ice Cube, the enduring cultural footprint of Friday is something he experiences firsthand on a constant basis.
“I hear stories like that every week,” he says with a smile. “Every week somebody is coming at me and telling me a story about Friday or just a quote or just something that reminds me of the movie, and it’s a blessing.”
When creating the original film, Cube drew inspiration from the rewatchable neighborhood classics of his own youth—specifically pointing to 1970s staples Car Wash and Cooley High. He wanted to capture an atmosphere that audiences wouldn’t just watch, but feel invited into.
“You want to be a part of it, you wanted to know the characters, you wanted to hang,” he explains. “You want that neighborhood classic. Something that people can’t get enough of, and so achieving that was just a dream come true.”
While the sequels (Next Friday and Friday After Next) continued that momentum, fans have spent years clamoring for a fourth chapter. Cube confirmed that the project is actively moving forward, though it is currently stuck in the pre-production trenches.
“We’re working on doing a fourth one right now,” he says. “We’re just working on the boring paperwork stuff, [laughs] but after we’re done with that, we’re going to be shooting a very funny movie.”
Moving Forward Without Beloved Legends
Pulling off a new Friday installment comes with an undeniable emotional weight. Over the years, the franchise has lost several of its most iconic comedic voices, including John Witherspoon (Pops), Tom “Tiny” Lister Jr. (Deebo), Bernie Mac (Pastor Clever), AJ Johnson (Ezel), and Yvette Wilson (Rita).
Acknowledging the void left by their passing, Cube notes that the franchise has always thrived because it acts as a comedic mirror to real life—and loss is an unavoidable part of reality.
“You like Friday because it’s a hyper-funny way to look at real life,” Cube reflects. “Death and tragedy—we look up and how many people are missing in our lives since Friday came out in 1995? They’re not here no more, and we miss them and remember them, but we still gotta move on and live life and laugh today, tomorrow, the next day. It’s people still around us that do that. So, the Jones family is gonna deal with it the same way anybody’s family would deal with death and people not being here.”
The Secret to Making Ice Cube Laugh
Despite his famously stoic demeanor on screen and behind the mic, Ice Cube admits he spends most of his day laughing,whether he’s surrounded by his inner circle or scrolling through “this stupid internet.”
When asked to name the one comedian—past or present—who consistently gets him laughing all day, Cube doesn’t hesitate to shout out his Next Friday and Friday After Next co-star, Mike Epps.
“Mike Epps is just extremely funny to me,” Cube says, laughing. “His style of comedy just never gets old to me. That’s just his personality. He’s just funny.”
Cube compares Epps’ natural comedic energy to that of the late John Witherspoon, noting that because Epps is in his own generational bracket, his humor always hits the bullseye. That dynamic is also the secret behind Epps’ scene-stealing moments as Day-Day on set, where Cube intentionally throws away the rulebook to let Epps improvise.
“A lot of his stuff is off the dome and in the moment, and we give him that freedom to feel free,” Cube says of his directing philosophy with Epps. “We’re gonna keep the cameras rolling and we ain’t gonna yell ‘Cut!’ too quick. If you feel it, do it. Don’t ask! If you feel it, do it. It’s tape—we can edit if we don’t like it.”
