The "Fast and Furious" franchise has come a long way from its humble, Southern California street racing roots. After all the destruction, mayhem, and high-flying stunts found in the latest installment, "The Fate of the Furious," there's not only more of that coming, but a spin-off series, too.
Deadline reports Universal is discussing a spin-off of the "Fast and Furious" franchise to feature Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Jason Statham's characters from the film saga. Specifically, Chris Morgan, the screenwriter for the most recent film, is reportedly set to work with both Statham and Johnson. Johnson plays hulking Diplomatic Security Service Agent Luke Hobbs and Statham most recently was introduced to play bad guy Deckard Shaw in "Furious 7." Both have had two films to set up plenty of chemistry and dish out underwhelming one-liners.
Fast and the Furious family - Image via Vin Diesel Facebook page
Johnson had originally hinted a spin-off was in the works but said he's taking things as they come. The fact "Furious 8" raked in $532.5 million during its opening weekend may have swayed that decision. After all, that figure surpassed the previous record held by "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."
Not only will a spin-off occur with Johnson and Statham, two more "Fast and Furious" films are confirmed for the future. The ninth installment is scheduled to release on April 19, 2019, while the tenth (and supposedly final) film of the series will drop on April 21, 2021.
Film it, and they will come, to slightly tweak the old adage.