''Ride Along'' is a 2014 American

buddy cop Buddy cop is a film and television genre with plots involving two people of very different and conflicting personalities who are forced to work together to solve a crime and/or defeat criminals, sometimes learning from each other in the process. ...

action comedy film Action comedy is a genre that combines aspects of action and comedy. The genre is most prevalent in film with action comedy films, though several TV series fit this genre. Film The action comedy film is a film genre that combines aspects of actio ...

directed by

Tim Story Timothy Kevin Story (born March 13, 1970) is an African American film director. He is best known for '' Barbershop'' (2002), the '' Fantastic Four'' (2005) and the ''Ride Along'' franchise. He has been nominated for two NAACP Image Awards for O ...

and starring

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...

, and

Kevin Hart Kevin Darnell Hart (born July 6, 1979) is an American comedian and actor. Originally known as a stand-up comedian, he has since starred in Hollywood films and on TV. He has also released several well-received comedy albums. After winning se ...

. The film follows Ben Barber (Kevin Hart), a security guard who must prove to his girlfriend's police officer brother, James Payton (Ice Cube), that he is worthy of marrying her. During their 24-hour patrol of Atlanta, Ben accidentally gets wrapped up in James' hunt for an arms dealer, Omar (Laurence Fishburne). The film was produced by

Relativity Media Relativity Media is an American media company founded in 2004 by Lynwood Spinks and Ryan Kavanaugh. The company brokered film finance deals and later branched into film production and other entertainment ventures. The company was commercially s ...

Cube Vision Productions Cube Vision (sometimes stylized as CubeVision or Cubevision) is an American film and television production company founded by Ice Cube and Matt Alvarez. History Ice Cube started his movie producing career in 1995 with his then manager Patricia Ch ...

and

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

, and distributed by

. Following two premieres in Atlanta and

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, the film was released worldwide on January 17, 2014. A sequel, ''

Ride Along 2 ''Ride Along 2'' is a 2016 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Tim Story and written by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi. It is the sequel to the 2014 film ''Ride Along''. The film stars Ice Cube, Kevin Hart, Ken Jeong, Benjamin Bratt, O ...

'', was released on January 15, 2016.

Plot

Undercover detective James Payton is on a falsifying passports operation by "Omar". After a shootout with the smugglers, his lieutenant asks him to drop the Omar case, which he does not. Ben Barber, a jumpy, short, tight-up high school security guard who plays video games in his spare time, applies to the Atlanta City Police Academy. He asks James for his blessing to marry his sister, Angela. He says Ben has to go on a "

ride along A ride-along is an arrangement for a civilian to spend a shift in the passenger seat of an emergency vehicle, observing the work day of a police officer, firefighter, or paramedic. Ride-alongs are offered by many police departments around the wor ...

" to prove he is worthy of her. If successful, James will recommend him for the academy, and give his blessing. Taking Ben to the station, James asks dispatch to give him all the 1-26s that are called in, which he has Ben take care of. Questioning the informant Runflat, James uncovers the connection between Serbia and "Omar" and hears a shipment will come in later that day. Leaving the park, James takes Ben to the local shooting range and finds out that

Zastava M92 The M92 is a carbine developed and manufactured by Zastava Arms since 1992. It is nearly identical to the Zastava M85 carbine; the only differences between the two are caliber and, correspondingly, magazine design. The M92 is a shortened version ...

's have been given to the store. When a 1-26 is called in, Ben and James go to the

Sweet Auburn Curb Market The Municipal Market is a historic market located in Atlanta, Georgia's Sweet Auburn Historic District at 209 Edgewood Avenue, S.W. The market operates as a nonprofit enterprise, with the building leased from the City of Atlanta and the individu ...

, where drunken 'Crazy Cody' is being disorderly. Ben tries to subdue him but cannot, so James arrests him. Ben asks to be taken home before Angela's call. He tells her about his stressful day, and she tells him James plays poker with a guy named Crazy Cody, and that 1-26s are code for annoying situations for newbies as a joke. He then goes into the police station and sees Cody laughing with James, Santiago and Miggs. Upset, Ben refuses to go home and instead takes a 1-26 for a disturbance at a strip club. There, two men get into a

Mexican standoff A Mexican standoff is a confrontation in which no strategy exists that allows any party to achieve victory. Any party initiating aggression might trigger its own demise. At the same time, the parties are unable to extricate themselves from the sit ...

with James and Ben which Ben, believing is another joke call, fools around. James subdues them, then they are tipped off about a gun deal with Omar's men. Ben confronts James about the 1-26s. James receives a call from Santiago in the car, finding out that Runflat had turned himself in. Ben says Runflat's brother told him in the park Runflat had just got out of prison, news to James so, another clue. They talk to Runflat's other brother, J, to get the location of the gun deal. During the conversation, Ben accidentally shoots J, who reveals where and when the deal will take place. Deciding to infiltrate the warehouse with Santiago and Miggs, James leaves Ben in the car. They betray him, turning out to be crooked cops working for Omar. James is then tied up, which Ben sees. Santiago mocks and criticizes James for being unsociable and egocentric. As the deal begins, Ben pretends to be Omar (as no one has ever seen the real Omar). Successfully fooling them, he wreaks havoc at the deal. Just as he is about to leave with James, the real Omar appears. A shootout ensues, and many of Omar's men are killed. Ben shows his sharp reflexes and knowledge of battle (thanks to his gaming). James and Ben take the money from the deal and escape before the warehouse explodes as Ben's grenade hits a box of explosives and destroys James's car. Unbeknownst to them, Santiago, Miggs and Omar escape. Santiago and Miggs arrive at Angela's apartment, tying her up. As she was playing one of Ben's interactive games, Ben's fellow gamers hear the confrontation between Angela, Miggs and Santiago through Ben's headset. At the hospital, being treated for a gunshot wound in the leg, Ben receives a call from a fellow gamer, who tells James something's going on at the apartment. After seeing some cops arriving at the hospital, James and Ben sneak out to the apartment with Omar's money. James injures Miggs, before fighting with Santiago. As Santiago is about to shoot James, Angela knocks him out. Ben gets knocked out by Omar in a fight. Omar takes the bag of money and Angela, and leaves. James follows Omar and Angela, confronting him. Just as Omar is about to shoot James, Ben slides over a car and kicks him. James shoots Omar twice, injuring him. Police arrest Omar, Miggs, and Santiago, and James finally gives Ben his blessing. In a mid-credits scene, Ben and Angela are engaged, and Ben is weeks away from graduating from the police academy. At a barbecue at James', Ben blows up the barbecue and goes flying into the bushes, killing the neighbor's dog.

Cast

as James Payton, undercover police detective *

as Ben Barber, James' sister's boyfriend *

Tika Sumpter Euphemia LatiQue Sumpter, better known as Tika Sumpter, is an American actress, singer, producer, television host, and model. Sumpter began her career as the host of '' Best Friend's Date''. From 2005 to 2010, she appeared in the daytime soap ope ...

as Angela Payton, James's sister and Ben's girlfriend *

John Leguizamo John Alberto Leguizamo Peláez (; ; born July 22, 196013:04) is an American actor, comedian, and film producer. He has appeared in over 100 films, produced over 20 films and documentaries, made over 30 television appearances, and has produced ...

as Santiago, a detective and Miggs' partner *

Bryan Callen Bryan Callen (born January 26, 1967) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer and podcaster. He studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse. Callen initiated his career as one of the original cast members on the sketch comedy seri ...

as Miggs, a detective and Santiago's partner *

Laurence Fishburne Laurence John Fishburne III (born July 30, 1961) is an American actor. He is a three time Emmy Award and Tony Award winning actor known for his roles on stage and screen. He has been hailed for his forceful, militant, and authoritative charact ...

as Omar, a boss of smugglers *

Bruce McGill Bruce Travis McGill (born July 11, 1950) is an American actor. He worked with director Michael Mann in the movies '' The Insider'' (1999), ''Ali'' (2001), and ''Collateral'' (2004). McGill's other notable film roles include Daniel Simpson "D-Day" ...

as Lieutenant Brooks, head of the Atlanta Police department Additional cast includes Gary Owen as Crazy Cody,

Jay Pharoah Jared Antonio Farrow (born October 14, 1987), better known by his stage name Jay Pharoah, is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and impressionist. Pharoah was a cast member on NBC's sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 2010 to 201 ...

as Runflat,

David Banner Lavell William Crump (born April 11, 1974), better known by his stage name David Banner, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Born in Brookhaven, Mississippi, Banner's family moved to Jackson, Mississippi, where he was raised. Ban ...

as Pawnshop Jay,

Dragoș Bucur Dragoș Bucur (; born 13 June 1977) is a Romanian actor, ambassador for the program ''Youth of the Move'' involved by the European Commission, and TV presenter for the show '' Visuri la cheie'' broadcast on Pro TV '' Visuri la cheie''. Dragoș ...

as Marko,

Gary Weeks Gary Weeks (born June 4, 1972) is an American film and television actor; he is also a film producer and screenwriter. Biography Gary Weeks was born in Wiesbaden, Hessen, Federal Republic of Germany in a U.S. airbase. He was raised in Georgia, ...

as Dr. Cowan,

Jacob Latimore Jacob O'Neal Latimore (born August 10, 1996) is an American actor, singer and dancer from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In 2016, Latimore released his debut album ''Connection''. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in ''Black Nativity (film), ...

as Ramone and Benjamin Flores, Jr. as Morris, Runflat's brother.

Production

On November 29, 2009, ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' announced that comedian

Jason Mantzoukas Jason Mantzoukas (, el, Ιάσων Μαντζούκας; born December 18, 1972) is an American actor, comedian, writer and podcaster. He is best known for his recurring role as Rafi in the FX comedy series ''The League'', and as one of the th ...

had been hired to write cop-buddy comedy film ''Ride Along'' for

New Line Cinema New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after acq ...

, originally written by

Greg Coolidge Gregory Coolidge (born Gregory Kullich; December 28, 1972) is an American writer and filmmaker. He grew up in Norman, Oklahoma, and later graduated from the University of Oklahoma. He is best known for writing and directing ''Employee of the Mont ...

, with

set to star in and produce the film along with Matt Alvarez, through Cube's film company, Cube Vision Productions. The film was originally offered to

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Di ...

, but according to Cube, the Warner executives reportedly passed down the offer because they told him that an action movie with two Black stars wouldn't sell well overseas; a studio executive claimed that the concerns about the stars were false and that the true reason of passing down ''Ride Along'' was because script disagreements. On July 11, 2012,

acquired the distribution rights to the film from New Line, with production starting in October,

was set to direct the film, rewritten by

Matt Manfredi Matt Manfredi is an American screenwriter. Early life and education Manfredi is from Palos Verdes, California,Phil Hay, and produced by

Will Packer Will Packer (born April 11, 1974) is an American film producer who founded Will Packer Productions, and Will Packer Media. Packer has produced or executive produced a wide range of movies that have grossed more than $1 billion worldwide at the ...

and Larry Brezner. On October 31, the studio announced the film would be released on January 17, 2014.

Casting

Ice Cube joined the cast on November 29, 2009, to play the lead role, Detective James; the story was then about a rogue cop who tries to break off his sister's engagement to an upper-crust white psychiatrist by inviting his future brother-in-law on a ride-along.

joined the cast on July 11, 2012 to play Ben, a high school security guard, with his character changed from white to black. On October 16,

joined the cast of the film to play an undercover cop. On October 30,

, and

joined the cast; Sumpter plays Angela, Ben's fiancée and James' sister, while Callen plays an undercover cop, and Pharoah plays a street informant. On November 9, ''

Backstage Backstage most commonly refers to backstage (theatre), also in motion picture and television production. Backstage may also refer to: Film and television * ''Back Stage'' (1969 film), a silent film starring Oliver Hardy * ''Back Stage'' (1942 fil ...

'' posted that the film's director was looking for adult extras of all ethnicities for the background in the film. On November 16,

joined the cast of the film to play a hard-nosed lieutenant. On December 7, Gary Owen also joined the cast, followed by

Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

on the film began on October 31, 2012 in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, and crews were filming some scenes at

Underground Atlanta Underground Atlanta is a shopping and entertainment district in the Five Points neighborhood of downtown Atlanta, Georgia, United States, near the Five Points MARTA station. It is currently undergoing renovations. First opened in 1969, it takes ...

on October 31 and November 1. On October 31, ''CBS Atlanta'' posted the news that Atlanta police are warning residents that there would be a simulated gun battle inside the mall area during the filming on Thursday, November 1. It was a 35-day shoot, which wrapped up filming on December 19 in Atlanta.

Music

On April 29, 2013,

Christopher Lennertz Christopher Joseph Lennertz (born January 2, 1972) is an American composer, songwriter, and conductor of film, television, and video game scores. His musical scores appeared in ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'', ''Hop'', ''Think Like a Man'', and ''Ho ...

was hired to score the film. Lennertz previously collaborated with Story on the 2012 comedy ''

Think Like A Man ''Think Like a Man'' is a 2012 American romantic comedy film directed by Tim Story, written by Keith Merryman and David A. Newman, and produced by Will Packer. It was based on Steve Harvey's 2009 book ''Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man''. The fil ...

''. The soundtrack was released digitally on January 14, 2014 by Back Lot Music, while a CD version was released on January 28 by

Varèse Sarabande Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, owned by Concord Music Group and distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums, as well as newer r ...

Promotion and release

teaser trailer A teaser (or more specifically teaser trailer) is a mini- trailer and a form of teaser campaign advertising that focuses on film and television programming. It is a videography pre-release move or television show advertisement. Short in length, te ...

and an image were released on July 1, 2013. On September 26, studio revealed the first teaser poster featuring Cube and Hart. On November 5, eight new images from the set and the poster were revealed. A second trailer of the film was revealed from studio on November 7. On December 19, Universal released a full length trailer for the film. On the night of January 6, 2014, the film's first premiere was held at

Atlantic Station Atlantic Station is a neighborhood on the northwestern edge of Midtown Atlanta, Georgia, United States comprising a retail district, office space, condominiums, townhomes and apartment buildings. First planned in the mid-1990s and officially op ...

in Atlanta. On January 13, the

premiere was held at

TCL Chinese Theatre Grauman's Chinese Theatre (branded as TCL Chinese Theatre for naming rights reasons) is a movie palace on the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States. The original Chinese ...

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. Following the two premieres, the film was released worldwide on January 17, 2014.

Box office

The film's 3-day opening weekend gross was $41,516,170, at 2,663 US and Canadian theaters (an average $15,590 per theater gross), giving ''Ride Along'' the then-record for highest domestic opening weekend gross in the month of

January January is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is also the first of seven months to have a length of 31 days. The first day of the month is known as New Year's Day. It is, on average, the coldest month of the ...

, ahead of 2008's ''

Cloverfield ''Cloverfield'' is a 2008 American found footage monster film directed by Matt Reeves, produced by J. J. Abrams, and written by Drew Goddard. It stars Lizzy Caplan, Jessica Lucas, T.J. Miller, Michael Stahl-David, Mike Vogel and Odette Yustman ...

''. For the 4-day record-breaking MLK weekend, the film grossed $48,626,380. The film held the number one spot at the US box office for three weeks, grossing $21 million and $12 million in its second and third weekends. The North American domestic gross was $134,202,565, with the international gross being $19,059,619, bringing the worldwide total to $153,262,184.

Home media

''Ride Along'' was released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

and

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...

on April 15, 2014. This release included an alternate ending, a gag reel, deleted scenes, a behind-the-scenes documentary and a feature commentary of the film by Story. In the United States, the film has grossed $13.5 million from DVD sales and $8.7 million from Blu-ray sales, making a total of $22.2 million.

Reception

Critical response

''Ride Along'' received generally negative reviews from critics. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

the film has an approval rating of 18%, based on 136 reviews, with an average rating of 4.20/10. The site's consensus states: "Kevin Hart's livewire presence gives ''Ride Along'' a shot of necessary energy, but it isn't enough to rescue this would-be comedy from the buddy-cop doldrums."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

assigns the film a score of 41 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences surveyed by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...

gave the film a grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. British critic

Mark Kermode Mark James Patrick Kermode (, ; ; born 2 July 1963) is an English film critic, musician, radio presenter, television presenter and podcaster. He is the chief film critic for ''The Observer'', contributes to the magazine ''Sight & Sound'', prese ...

gave the film one out of five stars, describing it as "an action-comedy short on both action and comedy." Scott Foundas of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' called the film "a lazy and listless buddy-cop action-comedy that fades from memory as quickly as its generic title." ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

''′s film critic Chris Nashawaty gave the film a "C+" grade."

Accolades

The film received several award nominations, a 2014

BET Award for Best Actor The BET Award for Best Actor is awarded to actors from both television and film. Some nominees have been nominated based on their performances in multiple bodies of work within the eligibility period. Denzel Washington and Michael B. Jordan hold th ...

for Kevin Hart, and two 2014

MTV Movie Awards The MTV Movie & TV Awards (formerly the MTV Movie Awards) is a film and television awards show presented annually on MTV. The first MTV Movie Awards were presented in 1992. The ceremony was renamed the MTV Movie & TV Awards for its 26th editi ...

nominations, Best On-Screen Duo for Ice Cube and Hart, and Best Comedic Performance for Hart. On April 13, 2014, after the best-screen-duo award went to

Vin Diesel Mark Sinclair (born July 18, 1967), known professionally as Vin Diesel, is an American actor. One of the world's highest-grossing actors, he is best known for playing Dominic Toretto in the ''Fast & Furious'' franchise. Diesel began audition ...

and

Paul Walker Paul William Walker IV (September 12, 1973 – November 30, 2013) was an American actor. He was known for his role as Brian O'Conner in the ''Fast & Furious'' franchise. Walker began his career as a child actor in the 1980s, gaining recogniti ...

for ''

Fast & Furious 6 ''Fast & Furious 6'' (titled on-screen as ''Furious 6'') is a 2013 American action film directed by Justin Lin and written by Chris Morgan. It is the sequel to '' Fast Five'' (2011) and is the sixth installment in the ''Fast & Furious'' franc ...

'', Ice Cube joked to

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

that they were robbed.

Sequel

On April 23, 2013, the studio announced that there would be a

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

to the film. On February 18, 2014, it was announced that after the success of the first ''Ride Along'' film, Universal was moving forward with the sequel, which Tim Story would return to direct. Ice Cube and Kevin Hart reprised their roles, with Will Packer producing, and Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi on board again as screenwriters. ''Ride Along 2'' started filming on July 7, 2014; filming locations included

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

and Atlanta, Georgia. Universal released the film on January 15, 2016.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ride Along 2014 films 2014 action comedy films 2010s buddy comedy films American action comedy films American buddy cop films Films directed by Tim Story Films produced by Ice Cube Films produced by Will Packer Films set in Atlanta Films shot in Atlanta 2010s police comedy films Rainforest Films films Relativity Media films Universal Pictures films Cube Vision films Films scored by Christopher Lennertz African-American comedy films 2010s buddy cop films Films about the Serbian Mafia Films with screenplays by Phil Hay (screenwriter) Films with screenplays by Matt Manfredi Fictional portrayals of the Atlanta Police Department 2010s English-language films 2010s American films American buddy comedy films