Fast & Furious spinoff speeds to 2019 release date
Paul Walker's final ride in the Fast and Furious franchise started with a surprise and emotional midnight screening in Austin, introduced by producer Neal Moritz and series head cheerleader Tyrese.
Fast 9 may have been pushed back a year, but the franchise is still speeding into theaters in 2019 via a much-discussed spinoff.
Universal has set a release date of July 26, 2019, for the next entry in the billion-dollar franchise, which is being eyed as a starring vehicle for Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham, EW has confirmed. Neither actor has officially signed on.
The idea of a spinoff centered on Johnson’s Luke Hobbs and Statham’s Deckard Shaw has been speculated upon since their scene-stealing chemistry in April’s The Fate of the Furious. Though the project had yet to be formally announced, drama has recently surrounded it as fellow series star Tyrese Gibson publicly chastised Johnson multiple times for putting himself and a Hobbs film ahead of the Fast family.
On Wednesday, when it was announced that Fast 9 had been moved from April 2019 to April 2020, Gibson directed his frustration at Johnson on social media. “Congratulations to @TheRock and your brother in law aka 7 bucks producing partner @hhgarcia41 for making the fast and the furious franchise about YOU,” he wrote in an Instagram post. “And like you, DJ even if they call I will not be deleting this post – Gn folks see you in 2020 April #FastFamily right? Nah….. it’s about #TeamDewayne #3yrs will it be worth the wait? #NoShaw just Hobbs will this be another #BayWatch? Guys guys just relax I’m just a passionate film critic.”
The Hollywood Reporter first reported the news.