Back in October it was announced that Universal Pictures has pushed back Fast & Furious 9 to 2020 in order to make way for a spinoff movie focussing on Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham). And, during an interview with EW, The Rock has been chatting about the project and how it came about:
“We’ve got a lot of surprises,” said Johnson. “It’s been a challenging process because I feel like my intention from day one, when I first joined the cast, was to hopefully come in, have fun, and create a character that people will hopefully like and try to elevate the franchise. But in the process of elevating the franchise, I have always thought that in order for this to have real longevity and legs, we should spin out and create characters that can live on their own.”
The news of a Fast & Furious spinoff saw The Rock coming in for some criticism from his franchise co-star Tyrese Gibson, and Johnson went on to say that he won’t be drawn in to any feuds: “At the end of the day, the only thing I want to do is make a great movie for the fans. I never ever get wrapped up in the sludge of the bulls— that can be connected at times to a franchise. So I never get dragged into it. I never respond to any of that.”
The as-yet-untitled Fast & Furous spinoff is set for release on July 26th 2019.
Originally published December 3, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
