Last week, news surfaced that Universal Pictures is having difficulties finding a director forFast & Furious 8, which the studio has set for release on June 21, 2025. The report suggested thatFast & Furiousfranchise starVin Dieselis at least partially to blame for thesequelhaving no director in place yet, claiming the actor/producer is difficult to work with, and that he may be eyeing to direct one of the forthcoming sequels himself. Over the weekend,Vin Dieseltook to hisFacebookpage to issue a statement, revealing that no filmmaker has been given an offer to directFast & Furious 8, which will be part of the franchise’s last trilogy.
“The fans of theFast & FuriousSAGA are the best fans in the world… Since I became the Producer in 2008, you have been with me every step of the way… literally giving me feedback that proved invaluable. Thank you. My producing partnerNeal (H. Moritz)would love for me to just sign off on a director, but this is too special a franchise, so these matters have to be very carefully handled. To be clear, NO ONE has been offered to helmFast 8yet… let alone seen a script. Universal has been so good to me and so trusting of the vision… they have been like family… I promised the studio I would deliver one last Trilogy to end the saga. I will announce the directors on my next post…”
Back in March, just beforeFurious 7hit theaters,Vin Dieselappeared onJimmy Kimmel Live!, where he revealed thatFurious 7starts a new trilogy, and thatFast & Furious 8will be set in New York City. The actor/producer also teased thatKurt Russell’s character, Mr. Nobody, will play an important role inFast & Furious 8. The actor’s comments seem to reveal thatFurious 7, Fast & Furious 8 and an unannounced ninth movie will wrap up the franchise for good.
Along withVin DieselandKurt Russell,Dwayne JohnsonandJason Stathamhave confirmed that they’ll be back as Hobbs and Ian Shaw, respectfully, but no other cast members have been announced yet. A rumor surfaced in April that the franchise is looking to bring back2 Fast 2 FuriousstarEva Mendesas U.S. Customs agent Monica Fuentes, but that hasn’t been confirmed either. Other franchise stars such asMichelle Rodriguez,Jordana Brewster,Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges,Elsa PatakyandLucas Blackare expected to return as well.
It also isn’t known yet who is writing the screenplay at this time.Chris Morgan, who wroteThe Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift,Fast & Furious,Fast Five,Fast & Furious 6andFurious 7, is currently shepherding Universal Pictures' shared monsters universe withAlex Kurtzman, so it isn’t known if he will be available to writeFast & Furious 8. Who do you think should directFast & Furious 8? Let us know what you think, and stay tuned for more updates.
