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50 free Martin Lawrence trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
Martin Lawrence was born on a US Air Force base in West Germany, named after Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy, boxed in the Golden Gloves as a teenager and lost on Star Search before Columbia executives gave him his first acting job. Five seasons of Martin, four Bad Boys films and three turns as Big Momma followed. This quiz covers the sitcom (WZUP, Sheneneh, Gina and Pam), the film career (Bad Boys, Blue Streak, Life, Nothing to Lose, Wild Hogs, Open Season), the stand-up specials, Def Comedy Jam, the SNL monologue that got him banned from NBC, the 1999 coma and his Hollywood Walk of Fame star. Every answer comes with a short explanation, so it works as a 90s comedy round or a test for anyone who can still quote Martin Payne.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01In which country was Martin Lawrence born?
West Germany
His father was serving in the US Air Force in Frankfurt; the family moved to Maryland when he was seven.
Q 02After whom were Lawrence's first and middle names chosen?
Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy
His middle name is Fitzgerald.
Q 03In which sport did the teenage Lawrence become a Mid-Atlantic Golden Gloves contender?
Boxing
He credits his mother and older brothers with keeping him out of jail while growing up in the projects.
Q 04Which comedian saw his act in Washington and suggested he make connections in New York?
Ritch Shydner
Lawrence moved to New York and found his way to The Improv.
Q 05On which 1980s sitcom did Lawrence get his first acting job, playing Maurice Warfield?
What's Happening Now!!
Columbia executives offered him the part after seeing him reach the final round of Star Search.
Q 06Which Spike Lee film gave Lawrence his breakthrough role as Cee?
Do the Right Thing
House Party, House Party 2 and Boomerang followed soon after.
Q 07Which HBO stand-up series did Russell Simmons pick Lawrence to host?
Def Comedy Jam
The show gave mainstream exposure to Chris Tucker, Dave Chappelle, Bernie Mac and Cedric the Entertainer.
Q 08Who co-hosted the HBO stand-up showcase with Lawrence during its first six seasons?
Joe Torry
Steve Harvey took over for season seven and D. L. Hughley for season eight.
Q 09On which network did the sitcom Martin air from 1992 to 1997?
Fox
It anchored Fox's Thursday line-up against NBC's "Must See TV".
Q 10What was the surname of Lawrence's character on Martin?
Payne
Martin Payne started out as a disc jockey living with his girlfriend Gina in Detroit.
Q 11In which city was Martin set?
Detroit
Martin worked at the fictional radio station WZUP before hosting the talk show Word on the Street.
Q 12What were the call letters of the radio station where Martin Payne worked?
WZUP
The station name reads as a greeting, "What's up".
Q 13Who played Gina, Martin's girlfriend and later wife?
Tisha Campbell
She had earlier played Sidney in House Party and later starred in My Wife and Kids.
Q 14Who played Pam James, Gina's best friend and Martin's sparring partner?
Q 21What happened after Lawrence's 1994 Saturday Night Live monologue?
He was banned from NBC for a time
The offending portion was cut from reruns, and the ban ended only after an apology from NBC's president.
Q 22What was the name of Lawrence's 1994 stand-up concert film?
You So Crazy
It was filmed at New York's Majestic Theatre and originally received an NC-17 rating.
Q 23Why did Miramax sell You So Crazy to Samuel Goldwyn?
The MPAA gave it an NC-17 rating
Goldwyn released it unrated, and it went on to gross over $10 million.
Tichina Arnold
She went on to play Rochelle in Everybody Hates Chris and Tina in The Neighborhood.
Q 15Which of these was one of the many extra roles Lawrence himself played on Martin?
Sheneneh Jenkins
He also played his own mother Edna, Jerome, Ol' Otis, Roscoe and martial-arts instructor Dragonfly Jones.
Q 16Which future 30 Rock star played Hustle Man on Martin?
Tracy Morgan
He appeared in seasons three and four; Reginald Ballard was Bruh-Man from the fifth floor.
Q 17Why was Gina written out as "out on business" for much of Martin's final season?
Campbell left and sued over working conditions
She settled and returned for the last two episodes on condition she shared no scenes with Lawrence.
Q 18Which cast member had died before the 2022 reunion special, which paid tribute to him?
Thomas Mikal Ford
He played Tommy, whose job was a running mystery; the reunion aired on BET+.
Q 19What is the title of the 2024-announced prequel series about the sitcom lead as a teenager?
Young Martin
It is described as both an origin story and a reimagining, set in modern-day Detroit.
Q 20Which Martin character gets his own spin-off, headlined by Tommy Davidson?
Varnell Hill
Kym Whitley joined the cast as a series regular in August 2025.
Q 24Where was his 2002 concert film Martin Lawrence Live: Runteldat shot?
DAR Constitution Hall, Washington DC
It addressed the legal and personal troubles that had forced him into a lengthy hiatus.
Q 25What is the name of Lawrence's detective in the Bad Boys films?
Marcus Burnett
Will Smith plays his partner Mike Lowrey; the two swap identities in the first film.
Q 26Who made his feature directing debut with Bad Boys in 1995?
Michael Bay
It grossed $141 million on a budget of around $20 million.
Q 27In Bad Boys II, how does Mike accidentally wound Marcus during the Klan shootout?
He shoots him in the buttocks
Marcus is already doubting the partnership, not knowing Mike is dating his sister Syd.
Q 28Which directing duo took over the Bad Boys franchise for the third and fourth films?
Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah
Bad Boys for Life became the highest-grossing film of 2020 at the US box office.
Q 29What do Mike and Marcus try to do in Bad Boys: Ride or Die?
Clear their late captain's name
Captain Conrad Howard is falsely accused of conspiracy; Marcus also has a heart attack at Mike's wedding.
Q 30Besides Smith and Lawrence, who is the only actor to appear in all four Bad Boys films?
Joe Pantoliano
Theresa Randle played Marcus's wife in three films before Tasha Smith took over.