Rush Hour 3: Chris Tucker Rips Off New Line...

Hey guys, it's Donnie...This has got to be one of the most ridiculous deals in the history of Hollywood. It's certainly the most ridiculous deal in recent memory. For reasons passing understanding (and by that I mean $$) New Line Cinema is absolutely intent on getting Rush Hour 3 off the ground. The picture almost came together earlier in the year, but the elusive Chris Tucker walked at the last minute, thus sending writer Jeff Nathanson off to take a crack at writing Indianna Jones 4 and allowing director Brett Ratner to shit all over the X-Men franchise. Somehow New Line brought everyone back to the table and this is the deal they've worked out:

Chris Tucker will get $20 million against 20% of the gross. Jackie Chan will get $15 million against 15% of the gross. Brett Ratner will get $5 million against 5% of the profits. Nathanson will also receive an unspecified seven figure paycheck.

Think about that.

That means that New Line has already written off 40% of the film and over $40 million dollars.

And the movie technically still doesn't have a green light.

Chris Tucker was previously holding out for script approval, but he ceded that point so long as the script still closely resembles what Nathanson has already pitched. Yes, that's right, there's still no script. Nathanson is expected to finish his script for a summer 2006 start date, with shooting taking place in the US and France. That means the film would roll into theaters sometime in 2007.

Here's my question:

Does anyone still give a crap about this franchise? Seriously, I mean it's usually pretty good for some mindless entertainment, but I feel like the outtakes during the credits are usually the best part of the movie. ("He ain't gonna be in Rush Hour 3...") And when's the last time Chris Tucker did...anything? Oh yeah, Rush Hour 2. How does he do that? How do you not do a movie for five years and somehow talk yourself into the $20 million club? He must have the greatest agent in the history of ever.