Despite suffering a heavy slump in its third weekend in China, Universal Pictures’ over-the-top action blockbuster Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw has raced past the $700 million mark at the global box office this past weekend.
China is Hobbs & Shaw’s biggest market, the David Leitch-directed spinoff having banked $186 million in the Middle Kingdom, where both Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham enjoy healthy fanbases. It has earned a further $164 million domestically (making it the first F&F movie since 2009’s Fast & Furious not to crack $200 million), while its worldwide haul currently stands on $721 million.
At this point, it seems unlikely that Hobbs & Shaw will have enough gas in the tank to catch Fast & Furious 6, which earned $788.7 million back in 2013, and will presumably have to settle for fourth place in terms of the franchise’s biggest earners (Furious 7 holds the record with $1.516 billion, followed by The Fate of the Furious on $1.236 billion).
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Ever since hulking lawman Hobbs (Johnson), a loyal agent of America’s Diplomatic Security Service, and lawless outcast Shaw (Statham), a former British military elite operative, first faced off in 2015’s Furious 7, the duo have swapped smack talk and body blows as they’ve tried to take each other down.
But when cyber-genetically enhanced anarchist Brixton (Idris Elba) gains control of an insidious bio-threat that could alter humanity forever — and bests a brilliant and fearless rogue MI6 agent (The Crown’s Vanessa Kirby), who just happens to be Shaw’s sister — these two sworn enemies will have to partner up to bring down the only guy who might be badder than themselves.
Hobbs & Shaw blasts open a new door in the Fast universe as it hurtles action across the globe, from Los Angeles to London and from the toxic wasteland of Chernobyl to the lush beauty of Samoa.
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw is directed by David Leitch (John Wick, Deadpool 2) sees the return of Dwayne Johnson (Luke Hobbs), Jason Statham (Deckard Shaw) and Helen Mirren (Magdalene Shaw) alongside franchise newcomers Idris Elba (Luther), Vanessa Kirby (Mission: Impossible – Fallout), Eddie Marsan (Ray Donovan), and Eiza Gonzalez (Baby Driver).
