Universal Pictures
I’m going to level with you all — I find the Fast & Furious franchise to be utterly preposterous.
The first two were excellent early 2000s mindless action, the third one took a bizarre trip to Tokyo, the fourth one, uh, exists, and then the fifth one introduced The Rock — and that’s where it all changed.
Ever since the introduction of Luke Hobbs in 2011’s Fast Five, the franchise has found itself in a perpetual state of one-uppance, as each film seems hellbent on being more preposterous than the last. Simply put, when it comes to action movies, I’m more of a superhero guy — Iron Man, Batman, etc — than a superhuman guy, which is what Vin Diesel’s Dom Toretto appears to be.
That said, the franchise is still not only wildly entertaining but wildly successful, as each movie has racked in over $500 million, with both Furious 7 and The Fate of the Furious racking in over $1.2 billion apiece, making it one of the most profitable action franchises in Hollywood.
So, despite the fact that Dwayne Johnson will not be appearing in this latest installment — which hit theaters in April — expect the film to once again flirt with making a billion dollars at the global box office.
Check back here for the full trailer when it drops next week and catch Fast & Furious 9 — which is directed by Justin Lin and stars Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Nathalie Emmanuel, John Cena, Helen Mirren, Charlize Theron and Michael Rooker — when it hits theaters on Friday, May 22.
***
Eric is a New York City-based writer who still isn’t quite sure how he’s allowed to have this much fun for a living and will tell anyone who listens that Gotham City is canonically in New Jersey. Follow him on Twitter @eric_ital for movie and soccer takes or contact him eric@brobible.com