Brett Ratner unexpectedly became part of Donald Trump’s latest China visit, but the filmmaker was not there for politics alone. The director, who recently made the documentary Melania, reportedly joined the trip to scout filming locations for Rush Hour 4, marking another major step in his Hollywood comeback after years away from directing narrative features.
Brett Ratner to scout locations while on China trip with Donald Trump
Ratner traveled aboard Air Force One as Trump headed to Beijing for meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping. According to reports first published by the South China Morning Post and later confirmed by Ratner spokesperson Victoria Palmer-Moore, the director plans to use the visit to look at possible filming spots for Rush Hour 4.
The upcoming action-comedy would reunite Ratner with franchise stars Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. Paramount Pictures is handling the distribution duties, though the studio reportedly is not directly financing or producing the movie. Questions about Ratner’s involvement were instead directed toward RatPac Entertainment.
The film is especially notable because it would become Ratner’s first narrative feature since multiple sexual misconduct and harassment accusations surfaced against him in 2017. Ratner has consistently denied all allegations.
Ratner’s connection with Trump has grown more visible in recent months. Earlier this year, Amazon MGM Studios released Ratner’s documentary, Melania, which followed First Lady Melania Trump during preparations for Trump’s second inauguration.
The documentary reportedly earned more than $16.4 million domestically before later arriving on Prime Video. Trump previously reportedly encouraged billionaire Larry Ellison to support Ratner’s Rush Hour 4 plans after David Ellison officially took control of Paramount in 2025 (via The Hollywood Reporter).
The original Rush Hour became Ratner’s breakout success in 1998. The trilogy eventually earned more than $850 million worldwide. In a January interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Ratner denied claims that directing Melania was simply a strategy to restart his Hollywood career. “That’s ridiculous,” Ratner said. “I’ve been waiting to make Rush Hour 4; that was my strategy.”
Originally reported by Rishabh Shandilya on Mandatory.
