As if he hadn’t already, Kevin Hart certified his blockbuster star status this past weekend with About Last Night debuting at No. 2 with a $25 million opening behind the juggernaut known as The LEGO Movie, and his record-breaking Ride Along still sitting in sixth place in its fifth week in theaters. Ride Along, which co-starred Ice Cube, broke the Martin Luther King Day weekend record with a $41 million opening, and it has already topped $117 million at the box office in the U.S. alone, making it a certified blockbuster on its simple $25 million budget.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Universal has already given Ride Along 2 the greenlight, because with this movie not even near its DVD release date, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that this movie could break $200 million when all is said and done. But even if it sputters out tomorrow and stalls at $117, Ride Along is sequel-worthy and Hart will be in for a huge payday by the time those negotiations begin. Hell, just looking at his IMDB profile and the James Franco-nian list of upcoming projects, Hart’s journey to $20 million man is almost complete. He should probably send Ryan Reynolds and Dwayne Johnson a fruit basket, though, for bailing on Ride Along in the first place, because that might have been the best thing that ever happened to Hart’s career.
Because just reading the plot of School Dance, written and directed by Nick Cannon and co-starring Wilmer Valderrama, I’m wondering if someone needs to sit Hart down soon and discuss quality over quantity. It’s not really a secret how quickly people get tired of celebrities in America, and Hart’s already met one example…