Sony Chairman Tom Rothman has dismissed the allegation that the company is stopping production on Bad Boys 4 in light of Will Smith’s Oscar’s slap in a new interview with Deadline.

“No. That was incorrect, according to Rothman. “That film has been in development and is currently in development. Because the automobile wasn’t moving, there were no brakes to pump. That was a really tragic event, and I don’t believe it’s really my place to comment on it other than to say that I’ve known Will Smith for a long time and know him to be a wonderful guy. That was an example of a nice person having a terrible day in front of the whole world. I believe in forgiveness and redemption, and I trust in his sincere apologies and sorrow.”

Rothman’s remarks come less than a week after CinemaBlend’s Sean O’Connell questioned Jerry Bruckheimer, the producer of the first three Bad Boys films, about what’s going on with the fourth edition.

“I can’t answer that issue except to say that individuals in higher positions have to make that judgment,” Bruckheimer said.

A few Smith-starring projects have been placed on hold in the two months after the slap heard around the globe. The Hollywood Reporter reported in April that Netflix has put the brakes on Smith’s next feature film, Fast and Loose. In light of the slap, Apple TV+’s Smith-starring Emancipation has been postponed until 2023.

Following 1995’s Bad Boys, 2003’s Bad Boys II, and 2020’s Bad Boys For Life, Bad Boys 4 will be the fourth installment in the buddy police series. The series has grossed almost $700 million globally to far, with the most recent installment grossing $436 million prior to the epidemic.

Complex.com is the source of this information.