The Odd Couple II premiered on April 10, 1998, and was a critical and commercial failure, grossing less than half of its predecessor at the box office.

On the flight from New York to Los Angeles, it becomes clear that Felix has not changed his ways either—he is still a fussy, allergy-suffering compulsive neat nuisance.

On the trip, Felix falls asleep, and Oscar takes a wrong turn onto the freeway, then loses the directions to San Malina when his cigar ashes burn them.

They are arrested several times by the same local police in fictional Santa Menendez, first for catching a ride in a truck carrying illegal Mexican immigrants.

Accepting an offer of a ride from a stranger older than them, Felix and Oscar end up inside a $150,000 vintage Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith.

Felix and Oscar are arrested a second time by the same Santa Menendez police, but again are released when it is discovered that the elderly man died of natural causes.

Frustrated by being arrested twice in Santa Menendez, the police chief advises Oscar and Felix to take a bus to San Malina.

The next day, Felix and Felice leave together on a flight to her home in San Francisco, and part ways with Oscar, who returns to Florida.

Koch was unsuccessful in convincing Paramount Pictures to approve a sequel, despite the original film's success and the return of Simon as the writer.

Filming continued throughout the summer in various southern and central California cities, including Arcadia, Guadalupe, Lancaster, Palmdale, Pomona, San Luis Obispo, Santa Maria and Shafter.

[11] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "B+" on scale of A+ to F.[12] Stephen Holden of The New York Times called it "a dispiriting, flavorless travesty, the equivalent of moldy tofu mystery meat".