Editorial Staff
Shortly after news hit that the ninth “Fast & Furious” had been delayed, franchise staple Tyrese Gibson took to Instagram to reveal why. According to the least important cog in the “F & F” wheel, that newly-announced spin-off starring Dwayne Johnson and Jason Strahan is the cow in the middle of the road of “F9”. Seems Universal opted to give The Rock his solo movie.. and Gibson is none too happy.
“Congratulations to @TheRock and your brother in law aka 7 bucks producing partner @hhgarcia41 for making the fast and the furious franchise about YOU. I guess dreams do come true congratulations to @hhgarcia41 and @therock you guys are just amazing you really broke up the #FastFamily I tried to warn you guys. You thought I was hating. I was simply fighting to keep the family together what makes us great is when you see us all TOGETHER we don’t fly solo. I got 3 years of venting on this clown. They offered but YOU didn’t have to agree with a solo #HobbsMovie.”
Personally I think it’s very unprofessional taking to social media to vent about such business — studios might have to start putting a clause into their actors contracts to grow up a bit and leave this stuff for the meeting.
Meanwhile, action movie wizard Shane Black (“The Predator”, “Iron Man 3”) is rumoured to be in the mix to take on the reigns on the ‘Hobbs’ movie.
While no deal is in place, fact that Black has been developing another movie with Johnson (“Doc Savage”), and his knack for two-hander actioners, suggests there’s a fair chance of it happening. Slick choice.
Previously …
After the news that “Fast 9” has been delayed by a year, it’s now been confirmed that a spin-off starring Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham is set for a 2019 release.
The news comes via THR, who have confirmed a release date of July 26, 2019, which has been cemented on the Universal calendar. Chris Morgan is attached to write the script, which will focus on Luke Hobbs, the Diplomatic Security Service agent played by Johnson, and Deckard Shaw, an assassin character who was one of the primary bad guys in the franchise before being redeemed and joining the motley crew of antiheroes that make up the roll call.
“Fast & Furious is one of Universal’s most beloved properties, and we handle every decision we make surrounding this franchise with great care,” Universal Pictures chairman Donna Langley told The Hollywood Reporter. “The global brand of Fast & Furious is strong and full of iconic characters, and we look forward to continuing to build on the film that started it all, as well as expanding into different narratives beginning with our first spinoff.”
While no deals have been locked in with the actors, the news leaves little doubt that it will all go ahead as planned.
