Once in the Life is a 2000 American direct-to-video crime film written , directed and starring Laurence Fishburne.

One of them is 20/20 Mike, a name given because he can sense people nearby, who concocts a scheme in which him and his brother Billy will steal drugs from young couriers.

The brothers hole up in an abandoned building, and 20/20 Mike seeks help from an old cellmate, Tony, who he thinks is out of the life of organized crime.

Once in the Life was the directorial debut of Laurence Fishburne,[2] and adapted from his own 1994 play Riff Raff.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Once in a Life is a promising directorial effort by Laurence Fishburne.