COLUMBIA MOVES FORWARD WITH 'BAD BOYS 3': But Will Smith and Martin Lawrence have yet to sign on.

       *Columbia Pictures is developing a third installment of "Bad Boys," with hopes that the project's new writer will motivate director Michael Bay, producer Jerry Bruckheimer and stars Will Smith and Martin Lawrence to reunite.
      
       All parties have expressed a willingness to return if a story can be hammered out, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Columbia has given the job to Peter Craig, who co-wrote "The Town," which Ben Affleck is directing for Warner Bros. and which shoots in Boston next month. He is also adapting anime "Cowboy Bebop" for 20th Century Fox and Keanu Reeves.

       The "Bad Boys" franchise features Smith and Lawrence as Miami detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett, caught up in cases involving car chases and explosions.
      
       The first "Boys," released in 1995, helped launch Bay as a director and Smith as an action star even though it was not considered a blockbuster -- it grossed $66 million domestically and $141 million worldwide. The sequel, released in 2003 when Bay and Smith's stars had risen, grossed $138 million domestically and $273 million worldwide.