Editing Lethal Weapon 4 (section)

==Release==

===Box office===
''Lethal Weapon 4'' debuted at {{Abbr|No.|Number}} 1 at the box office with $34.05 million.<ref>https://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?view=&yr=1998&wknd=28&p=.htm {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151010230319/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?view=&yr=1998&wknd=28&p=.htm |date=2015-10-10 }} BOM</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Action-Hero Films Have $70-Million Blast; Box office: 'Lethal 4' opens at No. 1, 'Soldiers' in third, as 'Armageddon' stays solid.|work=Los Angeles Times|date=July 13, 1998|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-jul-13-ca-3234-story.html|access-date=December 7, 2010|first=Richard|last=Natale|archive-date=October 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029090218/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-jul-13-ca-3234-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Although the film grossed $130 million in the U.S., it was not considered a runaway financial success as the previous three films had been.<ref>{{cite news|title='Lethal' Has a Winning Formula|work=Los Angeles Times|date=July 14, 1998|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-jul-14-ca-3440-story.html|access-date=September 11, 2010|first=Robert W.|last=Welkos|archive-date=October 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029085235/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-jul-14-ca-3440-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Shooting began in January 1998, just months before the film's release, with a production budget estimated at $120–$150 million (although [[Warner Bros.]] maintained it cost less than $100 million)<ref name="Wolk (1998)">{{Cite magazine |url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,83595,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070420235759/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,83595,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 20, 2007 |title=Lethal Weapon 4 |author=Josh Wolk |date=July 13, 1998 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=September 30, 2010}}</ref> and an additional $50 million spent on marketing and distribution.<ref name="Natale (1998)">{{Cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-jul-14-fi-3512-story.html |title=Lethal Comes Out Shooting but Stars Will Drain Profit |author=Richard Natala |date=July 14, 1998 |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=September 30, 2010}}</ref> This made the fourth film the most expensive entry of the series. Its profit margin was saved in part due to the combined foreign box office sales making the film gross approximately $285 million in total,<ref name=mojo>{{Cite web |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lethalweapon4.htm |title=Lethal Weapon 4 |publisher=Box Office Mojo |access-date=September 30, 2010 |archive-date=September 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100912131312/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lethalweapon4.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> making the second highest-grossing film in the ''Lethal Weapon'' film series behind, ''[[Lethal Weapon 3]]'' (1992). Still, like its predecessors, ''Lethal Weapon 4'' was among the top ten grossing films of its release year.

===Critical reception===
{{RT prose|{{RT data|score}}|{{RT data|average}}|{{RT data|count}}|Jet Li's arrival breathes fresh life into a tired franchise formula -- but not enough to put ''Lethal Weapon 4'' on equal footing with its predecessors.|ref=yes|access-date=2023-08-01}} {{MC film|37|21|ref=yes|access-date=2023-08-01}}

[[James Berardinelli]] gave the film three stars out of four, writing: "Given the expectations that constrain it, ''Lethal Weapon 4'' is probably the best motion picture that could possibly result from another teaming of Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh. The series has lost a lot of steam since the first two entries, and, although the fourth movie ratchets up the energy level from the moribund state of the disappointing ''Lethal Weapon 3'', there's no sense of spontaneity."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://preview.reelviews.net/movies/l/lethal4.html |title=Lethal Weapon 4 |author=James Berardinelli |work=Film review |publisher=reelviews.net |access-date=September 30, 2010 |archive-date=June 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630232333/https://preview.reelviews.net/movies/l/lethal4.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Roger Ebert]] gave ''Lethal Weapon 4'' two stars out of four, writing: "''Lethal Weapon 4'' has all the technical skill of the first three movies in the series, but lacks the secret weapon, which was conviction. All four movies take two cop buddies and put them into spectacular and absurd action sequences, but the first three at least went through the motions of taking the plot seriously (and the first one did such a good job, it made my 'best 10' list of that year). This time, we're watching an exercise."<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19980710/REVIEWS/807100303/1023 |title=Lethal Weapon 4 |date=July 10, 1998 |work=Reviews |publisher=rogerebert.com |access-date=September 30, 2010 |archive-date=June 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120601094518/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19980710/REVIEWS/807100303/1023 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Michael O'Sullivan of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' called it a "stupid and violent delicacy" that balances a "patented blend of high action and low comedy".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/lethalweapon4osullivan.htm|title=Another Day, Another 'Lethal Weapon'|last=O'Sullivan|first=Michael|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=1998-07-10|access-date=2014-12-13|archive-date=2016-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305005616/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/lethalweapon4osullivan.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

The film was nominated for a [[Razzie Award]] for Worst Supporting Actor for Pesci.<ref>{{cite book|last=Wilson|first=John|title=The Official Razzie Movie Guide: Enjoying the Best of Hollywood's Worst |year=2005|publisher=Grand Central Publishing|isbn=0-446-69334-0}}</ref>

===Home media===
''Lethal Weapon 4'' has been released on [[VHS]] and [[DVD]] numerous times. It has been re-released in numerous sets that contain all four films in the series.<ref>{{cite web |title=Lethal Weapon: 4 Film Favorites |publisher=amazon.com |url=https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddvd&field-keywords=lethal+weapon |access-date=September 30, 2010}}</ref> ''Lethal Weapon 4'' was released on [[Blu-ray Disc]] as part of a box set with the additional ''Lethal Weapon'' films on May 22, 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.warnerbros.com/news/press-releases/%E2%80%9Clethal-weapon%E2%80%9D-franchise%E2%80%99s-new-5-disc-blu-ray-collection-debuts-may-22-whv-father%E2%80%99s-day|title="Lethal Weapon" Franchise's New 5-Disc Blu-Ray Collection Debuts On May 22 From WHV For Father's Day|access-date=2023-05-20|archive-date=2023-05-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230520171011/https://www.warnerbros.com/news/press-releases/%E2%80%9Clethal-weapon%E2%80%9D-franchise%E2%80%99s-new-5-disc-blu-ray-collection-debuts-may-22-whv-father%E2%80%99s-day|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Walmart">{{cite web |url=http://www.walmart.com/ip/20462032 |title=Lethal Weapon Collection: 1 - 4 (Blu-ray) (Widescreen) |access-date=2012-06-18}}</ref>