Yesterday, a report surfaced that Universal Pictures has narrowed itsFast & Furious 8director search down to four candidates,F. Gary Gray,Adam Wingard,Louis Leterrierand William Eubank. While principal photography onFast & Furious 8isn’t expected to begin until next spring, pre-production is slated to begin at the end of this month, and the studio was expected to make their decision very quickly.Varietyreports thatF. Gary Grayhas been selected to take the helm, and while Universal hasn’t confirmed the report, star-producerVin Dieselposted a photo of himself and the filmmaker on hisFacebookpage.
This news comes less than a week afterVin Dieselhimself said that he wantsRob Cohen, who directed the first movie in the franchise, 2001’sThe Fast and the Furious, to come back forFast & Furious 8. The actor said that his late co-starPaul Walkeralways wanted him to come back to direct one more move in the lucrative franchise.Vin Dieselhas previously said that this year’s blockbusterFurious 7, which took in over $1.5 billion worldwide, would start a new trilogy, and thatFast & Furious 8will be set in New York City.
Vin Dieselalso said that the screenwriter, who has not been identified yet, will hopefully deliver a script within the next two weeks.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. It isn’t known if he is pulling double-duty by also writing theFast & Furious 8screenplay, or if the studio is going with a brand new writer.
Kurt Russell’s Mr. Nobody fromFurious 7is said to play an important role inFast & Furious 8.Dwayne JohnsonandJason Stathamhave also confirmed that they’ll be back as Hobbs and Ian Shaw, alongsideVin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto.2 Fast 2 FuriousstarEva Mendesmay also return as U.S. Customs agent Monica Fuentes. Other franchise stars such asMichelle Rodriguez,Jordana Brewster,Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges,Elsa PatakyandLucas Blackare expected to return as well.
F. Gary Graypreviously directedVin Dieselin 2003’sA Man Apart, and he also directedDwayne Johnsonin 2005’sBe Cool. His other directorial credits includeFriday, Set It Off, The Negotiator,The Italian JobandLaw Abiding Citizen. He also serves as a producer on the upcoming dramaThe Sea of Trees, starringMatthew McConaughey,Ken WatanabeandNaomi Watts. Take a look atVin Diesel’s photo withF. Gary Graybelow.
