Production To Shut Down On 'Fast X' As Justin Lin Steps Down As Director
'Fast 10' has slowed down production with the news yesterday that Justin Lin has left the directors chair. On Twitter Justin released a statement saying, "With the support of Universal, I have made the difficult decision to step back as director of 'Fast X'." This would have been Justin's fifth movie in the franchise following the fourth, fifth, sixth, and ninth installments. The movie will have to take a brief pause as a new director is found. Notably Lin is staying on as a producer adding credibility to the split being amicable.
It seems as if the search for a new director will be just as fast paced as the film franchise. Seeing as the director of 'Fate of The Furious', F. Gary Gray being namechecked the day the news broke. Along with David Leitch, director of Fast adjacent 'Hobbs & Shaw' being tapped as a possible replacement as well. Universal seems very hopeful that shooting will resume quickly as insiders have said the studio does not plan on moving the May 19, 2023 release date. Which might mean they are already in talks with a new director, considering the movie is still shooting some things with the second unit. That and it is a franchise worth $1.9 billion domestically it's obviously one of Universal's biggest projects. It makes sense they are not expecting any hurdles with filming since the previous movie 'F9: The Fast Saga' pulled in $70 million last year on opening weekend, and a total of $173 million at the domestic box office.
#FASTX pic.twitter.com/T0w9LuYS0F
— The Fast Saga (@TheFastSaga) April 26, 2022
Justin Lin has had a hand in several of the 'Fast and Furious' films. The franchise has undoubtedly grown to massive proportions under his careful eye, and fans are left wondering what exactly was that creative difference? Especially given that the nature of the films treats no idea as too large to be on the big screen. Perhaps Lin was just tired of directing the action flicks and decided to pursue other projects while still producing the final two films of the franchise. It is understandable that after ten years and five films he would want to step out of the directors chair. You can only film so many car crashes before you want to do other things. Given that he has stepped back we are also left to wonder what may be in store for his future, unfortunately those details will have to wait until Justin Lin makes his next move.
We are excited to see what 'Fast 10' has in store for fans. Given that on Monday we saw Charlize Theron's new look for Cypher the villain of the movie. She released two photos on her Instagram captioned 'She's back baby'. Jason Mamoa also opened up to Entertainment Tonight, saying that he is "excited" for the film and the chance to work with Charlize. Going so far as to call her "amazing" in his interview, we can tell that he is really excited to be portraying the villain alongside Charlize Theron.
No matter who they tap to direct the tenth installment of the franchise all of us can be sure of one thing, it will sell tickets. Especially given that it is the first part of the epic conclusion to the long running franchise. Fans hope that the movies will continue to have the same directorial vision that Just Lin gave us. After all, in his own words, "Over ten years and five films, we have been able to shoot the best actors, the best stunts, and the best [expletive] car chases." And we hope that the next installment of 'Fast and Furious' movies will be exactly that. So look forward to May 19th next year for your next boost of adrenaline in theaters.