Miami isn’t just the city where "Ride Along 2" is set, it plays a big role in both the tone and the story. Ice Cube and Kevin Hart are going on another ride along, and this time, in Miami.
With the number of movies Kevin Hart has been starring in lately, Chris Van Vliet and Kevin Hart are pretty much BFFs.
Kevin Hart: "Always sharp by the way."
Chris Van Vliet: "Thank you, you as well."
Kevin Hart: "I tell you all the time you always look good man."
Chris Van Vliet: "I appreciate it."
Kevin Hart: "Always."
When "Ride Along" came out in 2014, it broke the box office record for the biggest January opening ever. So when it came time to do the sequel, they knew they had to deliver.
Kevin Hart: "Really kind of setting the tone for the rest of the cast by me and him showing up and really being about our business and about our work on that first day."
Kevin Hart’s character, Ben, is now a police officer and he’s teaming up with his future brother in law, James, played by Ice Cube. They’re tracking a drug lord and they find him here in Miami.
Chris Van Vliet: "Why is it that every fictional movie villain is from Miami?"
Benjamin Bratt: "There’s an exoticism, there’s a sensuality that’s very palpable here and also a kind of danger."
Miami is more than just the backdrop in Ride Along 2.
Kevin Hart: "Adding Miami to the mix just makes us feel like it’s a much bigger movie."
Olivia Munn: "Miami is like no other city in the world, and it’s so much fun, and there’s this great energy. It translates to what we’re doing in the movie because we’re all just having so much fun everyday."
For all the laughs in the movie, Kevin Hart and Ice Cube got surprisingly serious in our interview.
Chris Van Vliet: "With the amount of time you guys have spent together, two movies now, what have you learned about each other?"
Ice Cube: "Kevin is a smart, driven dude who is going to go a long way."
Kevin Hart: "Cube has been a great example of what can be done in this business so I’m very fortunate and lucky to have him as a friend but as a co-star and as a potential franchise partner. That was. Woah, did we record that? Holy [expletive]!"
By the way, if you’re a huge Kevin Hart fan, then you’ve already seen that interview. Kevin was livestreaming our conversation on Facebook with more than a million viewers.