It took a while to get going, but production is finally underway onFast & Furious 9. The sequel sees the return ofJustin Linto the director’s chair, who helmedTokyo Drift,Fast & Furious,Fast Five, andFast & Furious 6, which put the franchise on course to become a global phenomenon while Lin went off to helmStar Trek Beyondand the first two episodes ofTrue DetectiveSeason 2. Indeed, the last two installments of the franchise—Furious 7andFate of the Furious—both crossed $1 billion at the global box office, making this the rare franchise that is performing best as it ages.
But the development ofFast & Furious 9was a bit slower going than the other recentFast & Furiousmovies, potentially due to the spinoffHobbs and Shaw. Indeed, longtime franchise writerChris Morganwrote theDwayne Johnson- andJason Statham-fronted spinoff, which came about following some on-set bad blood between Johnson and Diesel during the making ofFate of the Furious. As a result of Johnson’s popularity, the mainFast & Furiousfranchise was somewhat put on pause to make way forHobbs and Shaw, and it’s telling that Morgan didnotwriteFast & Furious 9.
The initial screenplay for this new sequel was written byDaniel Casey, with an unknown female writer also coming onboardas a stipulation ofMichelle Rodriguez’s return. We don’t know much about the plot, but it’s been said that the franchise is due to come to an end withFast & Furious 10, so we could be in the endgame now.
Johnson will not be returning forFast & Furious 9, but Diesel enlistedJohn Cenato come aboard in an unspecified role. The usual suspects are likely to return—Ludacris,Tyrese Gibson,Nathalie Emmanuel, etc.—but so far we don’t have an official “start of production” press release from Universal nor confirmed cast list. All we have is the below Instagram video from Diesel, in which he and Rodriguez speak about the first day of filming on the new movie. Check it out below.
Fast & Furious 9is due to hit theaters on July 31, 2025.
