6. Shane Black Isn't A Long Term Replacement
Shane Black is known for a lot of things, but being a Franchise Head isn't one of them. You'll see this in the fact that he's only credited as writing the first Lethal Weapon, and only as the creator of the characters for the rest of the series. The quality of the sequels being what they were, it definitely showed. Black isn't a franchise player, nor is he a Comic Book helmer. Nothing in his career, credited or rumored, has indicated his interest in a gig like this for Black ever before in his career. There's one big, good reason he probably even took this one in the first place: Robert Downey Jr. and he happen to be good friends. What's more, they work fantastically together. Watch Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and you can see how Shane's writing and direction compliments Robert's performance style and persona. If you really wanted to, you could have just re-written Kiss Kiss Bang Bang for Tony Stark and Col. Rhodes, and you'd have had your work cut out for you. The argument remains, Shane Black didn't pick this up for a paycheck gig. He picked this up for the noblest of gigs you can achieve without being a fan-boy or a genre pro...he did it for his friend. It's an awesome thing when you think about it, but it's not the recipe for a long lasting franchise. I'd even bet there's no clause locking Mr. Black in for any further installments, and if there is it's probably because it's a built in given at this point. Needless to say, it's doubtless they'll continue after this point, and if they do, it won't be with Shane Black.