On This Day

Lethal Weapon released

March 6th 1987

09:18 6 March 2024

'Lethal Weapon' opened in theaters across North America on this day in 1987. Richard Donner's buddy cop action movie, written by Shane Black, stars Mel Gibson as unhinged L.A. cop Martin Riggs, assigned to partner veteran detective Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) and follows their attempts to bust a huge drug-smuggling operation.

The movie was a big hit with the public, grossing more than $120 million at the box office and is widely considered to be one of the best buddy cop films made, influencing many other movies since such as 'Hot Fuzz' (2007), 'Bad Boys' (1995) and 'Rush Hour' (1998). The success of 'Lethal Weapon' spawned a franchise that to date includes three sequels and a television series with a fifth film currently in pre-production.