20 facts you might not know about 'Lethal Weapon'

Black went on to become a successful director and an extremely successful screenwriter. It all started with Lethal Weapon. Fresh out of UCLA, Black decided to write an “urban Western” in 1985. That movie was Lethal Weapon. He got an agent who pitched the spec script around, and then an executive at Warner Bros. took a liking to it. Black was paid $250,000 for the script, as The Los Angeles Times reported in 1990, practically unheard of for a spec script at the time. This basically made Black’s name.

Black didn’t merely write one draft and then start shopping it around. Black’s first draft, by his own account, was darker and overstuffed. The script was 140 pages long — generally speaking, a page equals a minute on screen — and featured it raining cocaine on the Hollywood sign. When he finished, Black hated the first draft and initially gave up on the project before he began to rework it.

Richard Donner had directed Superman and The Goonies, so he had the cache to get the role directing Lethal Weapon. Not that he was the only choice. Leonard Nimoy, a.k.a. Spock, was considered, but he wasn’t comfortable directing action. Instead, he made Three Men and a Baby, which also came out in 1987. It also went on to be the highest-grossing film of that year. Yes, really.

At the time, wanting Gibson for a film made total sense. Fresh off directing Ladyhawke, Donner was looking to make a film with Gibson. Bruce Willis was also considered for the role and would star in the parody film Loaded Weapon 1. Meanwhile, casting director Marion Dougherty is the one who pitched Danny Glover for the role of Roger Murtaugh.

Gibson and Glover were flown to Los Angeles to basically read the script together and see if they would work as the buddy cop pairing at the center of the film. According to Donner, it was immediately obvious it would work perfectly. The director called the experience of watching the actors read the roles “magical” and “total dynamite" (h/t NME).

They were looking for somebody large and imposing enough to be a feasible foe for Gibson as Riggs, especially since Mr. Joshua and Riggs would culminate the action with a fist fight. Busey wanted the role and asked to read for the part. This was notable for him, as he hadn’t auditioned after getting an Oscar nomination for starring in The Buddy Holly Story. Busey got the part and has said it revived his career.

The screenwriter had an actor in mind for the role of Riggs, and that was William Hurt. However, the studio wasn’t interested in considering Hurt, as he was considered not nearly big enough of a name for the starring role.

With the help of stunt coordinator Bobby Bass, a former Special Forces instructor, the lead actors got primed to star in this action flick. Gibson and Glover trained with weights and firearms. Gibson also learned martial arts like Capoeira and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. On top of that, they spent time with LAPD officers on duty to better understand the job.

It’s not uncommon for actors to play characters who are a different age from their own, but Lethal Weapon approaches it from both sides of the equation. Gibson was 30 when he played the 38-year-old Riggs, while Glover was 40 when he played the 50-year-old Murtaugh.

Blackie Dammett plays “Drug Dealer #3” in Lethal Weapon, a small part in a career of a struggling character actor. His son would have better luck in his professional endeavors. Dammett’s real name is John Kiedis, the father of Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis.

Black is known for often setting his films around Christmastime, at least partially. Lethal Weapon is no exception. Trish Murtaugh, Roger’s wife, is played by Darlene Love. Love is a famous singer, perhaps best known for singing “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” on David Letterman’s show for years.

How did Donner follow up making Lethal Weapon? By making Scrooged. Yes, in back-to-back years, Donner directed movies set at Christmas.

When you think of Murtaugh, you likely think of him saying his iconic line, “I’m getting too old for this sh—t.” However, the line he says on multiple occasions in this film is actually, "I’m too old for this sh*t.” The "getting" was added to the line for the sequels, so technically, Murtaugh did say it eventually.

Riggs uses a Beretta 92F in this movie. The same prop gun would be used the following year in Die Hard. Having been featured in two legendary action movies, the gun was “retired,” presumably to life in a Planet Hollywood somewhere.

It feels like only They Live can match Lethal Weapon in terms of lengthy drag-out fights between two dudes who aren’t necessarily super-skilled fighters. Riggs and Mr. Joshua definitely get plenty of time dedicated to their fight. However, it was initially going to be even longer. Before being trimmed down, the fight between Riggs and Mr. Joshua was four minutes long.

Sure, Nimoy and Three Men and the Baby dominated the box office, but Lethal Weapon was no slouch. The first was top of the U.S. box office for three weeks. All in all, it made $120.2 million worldwide off of a budget of $15 million. Roger Ebert gave it four stars. It was nominated for an Oscar for Best Sound Mixing.

Riggs’ story arc involves his mental and emotional stability, as he is actively suicidal for much of the film. Apparently, this caught the attention of director Franco Zeffirelli. He reportedly decided to offer Gibson the role of Hamlet after seeing him in Lethal Weapon.

The potential for sequels was obvious with Lethal Weapon. It’s just a mismatched cop movie, after all. Lethal Weapon 2 arrived in 1989. Two more sequels followed in the 1990s. Gibson and Glover starred in all four movies, and Donner also directed them.

It’s not uncommon for scripts to get rewritten or tweaked, even ones that get bought for a ton of cash. Donner had screenwriter Jeffrey Boam do a pass on Black’s script to add some humor. While Boam isn’t credited, it was the start of a working relationship. Boam would get writing credits on both Lethal Weapon 2 and Lethal Weapon 3.

In 2016, FOX brought us Lethal Weapon, a TV adaptation of the movie. Damon Wayans played Murtaugh, while Clayne Crawford played Riggs. Living up to his character’s wild card reputation, Crawford was fired after the second season due to his reported on-set behavior. Riggs was killed off and replaced by Seann William Scott’s new character Wesley Cole. Wayans said he would leave after the third season, so the show was canceled.