It looks like Vin Diesel has bested Dwayne Johnson in at least one arena, clocking in at number one on Forbes’ list of the highest-grossing actors of 2017 — and throwing a little more fuel on that Fast & Furious feud (say that five times fast). Thanks to The Fate of the Furious and xXx: Return of Xander Cage, Diesel edged out his Fast co-star / arch-nemesis, and with fewer 2017 releases under his belt.
To honor the 15th anniversary of the movie that started it all, Universal is re-releasing The Fast and the Furious in theaters nationwide. Revisiting your introduction to Dom, Letty, Brian and the magical world of NOS should help make the wait for Fast 8 a little easier, but you’ll only have a limited time to see the original film on the big screen.
With James Wan not returning to direct the next installment in the Fast and Furious franchise, Furious 8 is in desperate need of someone to sit behind the camera before Vin Diesel decides to just do the job himself. But it looks like Universal has narrowed their options down to just a few directors, each of them interesting choices in their own right.
The Fast and Furious franchise wouldn’t be where it is now without Vin Diesel. The films didn’t even kick into high gear until Diesel returned for 2009’s Fast and Furious, and the box-office numbers have been climbing astronomically since then. To say Universal owes Vin Diesel a gigantic debt of gratitude is an understatement, but exactly how much do they owe him? Would they actually let Diesel, who has little experience directing a movie let alone directing a movie on the scale of a Fast and Furious film, behind the camera of Fast and Furious 8? According to a new report, this may be what Vin Diesel wants and Universal is terrified.
Fast and Furious 7 just made Universal over $1.5 billion and when you make people that much money, you can pretty much do whatever you want for your next project. Vin Diesel, the star of and producer of the Fast franchise, has that kind of clout now and has decided to use that clout to make…xXx 3?
Breaking news: people all over the world really like fast cars, movie stars, and constant references to family. Related: Furious 7 has just become the third highest grossing movie of all time, overtaking 2012’s The Avengers.
Furious 7 had one of the biggest box office openings of all time last weekend, earning a jaw-dropping $392 million worldwide. Somehow, Universal’s silly car-racing franchise has officially grown up and has the monetary clout to stand alongside the biggest movies of all time. So yeah, of course everyone wants a Fast and Furious 8, but fans hoping for a quick turnaround need to get comfortable. The next film is stuck at a red light and it’s going to be a little while before it turns green.
Vin Diesel, he of the bulging biceps, shiny scalp and low vocal register, has been making the press rounds for Furious 7 over the past few weeks. Considering just how crazy his new movie is, he sure has a lot to talk about. But even the unlimited number of potential conversation topics to mined from the insanity of the seventh film in the Fast and Furious saga couldn’t stop him from teasing the eighth film in the franchise, which may be set in New York City.