| The Bad Guys 2 | |
|---|---|
_teaser_poster.jpg) US theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Pierre Perifel |
| Screenplay by |
|
| Based on | The Bad Guys byAaron Blabey |
| Produced by | Damon Ross |
| Starring | |
| Edited by | Jesse Averna |
| Music by | Daniel Pemberton |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 104 minutes[2] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $80 million[3] |
| Box office | $238 million[3][4] |
The Bad Guys 2 is a 2025 American animatedheistcomedy film loosely based on the children's book seriesThe Bad Guys byAaron Blabey and produced byDreamWorks Animation. The sequel toThe Bad Guys (2022), it was directed byPierre Perifel with JP Sans, and written by Yoni Brenner andEtan Cohen. The film starsSam Rockwell,Marc Maron,Awkwafina,Craig Robinson,Anthony Ramos,Zazie Beetz,Alex Borstein,Richard Ayoade, andLilly Singh, reprising their roles from the first film, withDanielle Brooks,Natasha Lyonne, andMaria Bakalova joining the cast. In the film, the Bad Guys are forced to come out of retirement and join forces with an all-female criminal squad to perform one last heist.
Perifel expressed interest on developing a sequel toThe Bad Guys in March 2022, before the release of the first film. Two years later, DreamWorks Animation announced a sequel, with Perifel and the voice cast returning. Lyonne joined the cast in July 2024, with the involvement of Brooks and Bakalova being announced in November.Daniel Pemberton composed the score, returning from the previous film.
The Bad Guys 2 premiered in Argentina on July 24, 2025, before being released in the United States on August 1, byUniversal Pictures. The film received positive reviews from critics and grossed $238 million.
Following the defeat of Professor Marmalade and their release from prison,[a] the Bad Guys have reformed, but they struggle to fit into society. Wolf, Shark, Piranha, and Tarantula unsuccessfully apply for jobs while Snake is frequently away from home. Wolf spends his time with Diane and they grow closer, but they are unable to start a relationship due to Wolf being an ex-criminal and Diane being governor. Inspired by Diane to give people a reason to accept them, Wolf helps Chief Luggins, who is now Commissioner, track down the Phantom Bandit, a new criminal known for being untraceable. They soon find evidence leading to the bandit being Snake, only to later realize that he was with his new girlfriend, Susan. In an attempt to expose the Phantom Bandit at alucha libre wrestling tournament, the Bad Guys are framed by a pig for the Phantom Bandit's work. After escaping from the scene, Wolf calls Diane to maintain their innocence and she agrees to help them.
Susan, whose real name is Doom, kidnaps the Bad Guys; she is working with asnow leopard named Kitty, who is the Phantom Bandit, and awild boar named Pigtail Petrova, who framed the Bad Guys. Kitty has a video revealing Diane as the Crimson Paw (her former criminal identity), and threatens to release it unless The Bad Guys help her steal the experimental MOON-X rocket, which they reluctantly agree to do. Meanwhile, Diane visits Marmalade in prison, where he reveals that Kitty plans to use theInternational Space Station to steal all of the world's gold withMacGuffinite, a rare metal which can magnetize gold.
The group begins their plan by successfully stealing thesmartwatch of MOON-X's owner, Mr. Moon, at his wedding. Kitty gives Wolf the footage on aflash drive as promised. The Bad Guys plan to betray her, but instead she traps them, uploads the footage to theinternet, and alerts the police of the Bad Guys' location. Diane confronts the girls before they board the rocket. Kitty tranquilizes her, but Diane manages to sneak on board while half-conscious. Luggins proceeds to rearrest the Bad Guys, but admits that she trusts them and helps them board the rocket mid-launch via helicopter.
After learning the Bad Guys snuck on board, Doom and Pigtail refuse to attack them, but Kitty refuses to give up the plan, magnetizing the Earth's gold, along with a limo including a newly acquitted Marmalade. When Wolf reaches her, Kitty breaks the magnet's remote, but Wolf steals the smartwatch and maneuvers the rocket into the magnet, destroying it and returning the gold. An enraged Kitty attempts to kill Wolf for ruining her plan, but Diane recovers, furiously attacks Kitty and defeats her. Wolf and Diane happily reunite and share their first kiss, while the Bad Guys regroup as the space station plummets towards Earth. After crash-landing, Kitty is arrested, Doom and Pigtail are sentenced tocommunity service, and Lugginsfakes the deaths of the Bad Guys and Diane so they can be employed as secret agents. Meanwhile, Marmalade, who is still in orbit, transforms his limo into a spaceship and flies into space to his home planet.
In March 2022, a month beforeThe Bad Guys was released, directorPierre Perifel said that he would "love to do a sequel".[11] On March 26, 2024, a sequel was confirmed byDreamWorks Animation, with Perifel returning to direct and JP Sans, who served as head of character animation on the previous film, co-directing, making this his directorial debut.Sam Rockwell,Marc Maron,Awkwafina,Craig Robinson,Anthony Ramos,Richard Ayoade,Zazie Beetz,Alex Borstein, andLilly Singh all reprise their roles from the previous film.[12] On July 13, 2024, it was announced thatNatasha Lyonne had been cast in the sequel.[13]Maria Bakalova andDanielle Brooks were announced as part of the cast in November.[5]
On October 6, 2023, the then-unannounced film was revealed to be animated bySony Pictures Imageworks. Imageworks would operate as a partner studio with DreamWorks utilizing a "mixed production model". Pre-production would be done in-house at DreamWorks along with approximately 50% of the asset build and one hour of production, while Imageworks will handle the other 50% of asset builds and 20 minutes of shot production.[14] All animation was finished by May 7, 2025.[15][better source needed]
| The Bad Guys 2 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Film score by Daniel Pemberton | ||||
| Released | August 1, 2025 | |||
| Genre | Score | |||
| Label | Back Lot Music | |||
| DreamWorks Animation soundtrack chronology | ||||
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| Daniel Pemberton chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Bad Guys 2 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | ||||
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Daniel Pemberton returns to compose the film's score.[16]Rag'n'Bone Man andWizTheMc performed an original song for the film, titled "GOODLIFE", which was released as a single on July 11, 2025,[17] while another original song titled "Taking Everything", performed byBusta Rhymes, was released on July 25.[18] The official soundtrack was released byBack Lot Music on August 1, 2025, the same day as the film's theatrical release in the United States.[19]
All music is composed by Daniel Pemberton, except as noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "GOODLIFE" (performed byRag'n'Bone Man ft.WizTheMc) |
| Pemberton | 3:08 |
| 2. | "Taking Everything" (performed byBusta Rhymes) |
| Pemberton | 3:23 |
| 3. | "Cairo, Five Years Ago" | 2:24 | ||
| 4. | "Bottom of the List" | 2:40 | ||
| 5. | "The Phantom Bandit" | 1:26 | ||
| 6. | "Parting Gift" | 1:00 | ||
| 7. | "The Evidence Board" | 1:46 | ||
| 8. | "Give Them a Reason" | 1:09 | ||
| 9. | "Such a Snake" | 0:46 | ||
| 10. | "Lucha Lucha" | 2:25 | ||
| 11. | "A New Challenger" | 1:06 | ||
| 12. | "Hot Dog Running" | 1:53 | ||
| 13. | "Cops on Case" | 1:00 | ||
| 14. | "Someone Setting Us Up" | 1:35 | ||
| 15. | "Gear Up, Lay Low" | 1:10 | ||
| 16. | "Kitty Kat Crew" | 1:47 | ||
| 17. | "Crashing Down" | 2:00 | ||
| 18. | "Rocket Con" | 1:27 | ||
| 19. | "S.U.C.M. Prisoner" | 1:24 | ||
| 20. | "Here Comes the Bride" | 1:05 | ||
| 21. | "The Wedding Plan" | 4:02 | ||
| 22. | "Eyes Up Cowboy" | 1:23 | ||
| 23. | "Connect 4" | 1:16 | ||
| 24. | "Target Acquired" | 0:54 | ||
| 25. | "Magnet vs. Upload" | 2:43 | ||
| 26. | "Fox Fight" | 3:03 | ||
| 27. | "Cops Set It Up" | 0:45 | ||
| 28. | "You Believe Us" | 1:26 | ||
| 29. | "MoonX Countdown" | 1:26 | ||
| 30. | "Jump the Rocket" | 3:04 | ||
| 31. | "Zero Gravity" | 2:54 | ||
| 32. | "Gold Magnet" | 4:10 | ||
| 33. | "Power Move" | 2:36 | ||
| 34. | "Medium Friendly" | 1:33 | ||
| 35. | "Never Give Up" | 1:15 | ||
| 36. | "The Final Fanfare" | 2:14 | ||
| 37. | "Secret Agents" | 1:35 | ||
| 38. | "GOODLIFE (Super Extended Mix)" (performed by Rag'n'Bone Man ft. WizTheMc) |
| Pemberton | 8:47 |
| 39. | "Taking Everything (Film Mix)" (performed by Busta Rhymes) |
| Pemberton | 3:41 |
| 40. | "The Big Bad Wolf 2 (Bonus)" | 0:58 |
The first trailer for the film, set to "Bad Guy" byBillie Eilish, was released on November 21, 2024, and was later attached to the theatrical release ofWicked (2024).[5]
Main cast members Rockwell, Maron, Awkwafina, Robinson, Ramos, Brooks, Lyonne, and Bakalova appeared on a panel promoting the film at the 2025San Diego Comic-Con on July 26 leading up to its theatrical release.[20]
Awkwafina appeared as a guest on Maron's long-running podcastWTF, in one of its final episodes, on July 31, in promotion of the film, on the eve of its American theatrical release.[21]
The Bad Guys 2 was released theatrically in the United Kingdom on July 25, 2025, later in the United States on August 1, and in Australia on September 18.[12][22]
In addition to its theatrical release, and as part of a long-term deal withNetflix for Universal's animated films, the film will stream onPeacock for the first four months of the pay-TV window, before moving to Netflix for the next 10, and returning to Peacock for the remaining four.[23][24][25]
The Bad Guys 2 was released on digital download and in theaters on August 19, 2025,[26] and onDVD,Blu-ray andUltra HD Blu-ray on October 7, 2025.[27]
The Bad Guys 2 has grossed $83 million in the United States and Canada, and $155 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $238 million.[4][3]
In the United States and Canada,The Bad Guys 2 was released alongsideThe Naked Gun and was projected to make $20 million during its opening weekend. After making $9.2 million on its first day, including $2.25 million from Thursday previews, the film surpassed expectations and debuted with $22.2 million domestically, and $44.5 million globally, ranking it in second place behind holdoverThe Fantastic Four: First Steps.[28][29][30] In its second weekend, the film made $10.4 million (a drop of 53%), falling to fourth place.[31]The Bad Guys 2 then made $7.5 million in its third weekend, finishing in fifth place.[32]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 87% of 110 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "The Bad Guys 2's crew of reformed rapscallions are still a ton of fun as their latest adventure raises the stakes while maintaining a playful sense of mischief."[33]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 64 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[34] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, the same as the first film.[35]
In June 2025, two months before the theatrical release ofThe Bad Guys 2 in the United States, directors Perifel and Sans revealed in an interview withCollider that they were planning a third film.[36]
