Fast and Furious

With James Wan not returning to direct the next installment in the Fast and Furious franchise, Furious 8 is in desperate need of someone to sit behind the camera before Vin Diesel decides to just do the job himself. But it looks like Universal has narrowed their options down to just a few directors, each of them interesting choices in their own right.

The Fast and Furious franchise wouldn’t be where it is now without Vin Diesel. The films didn’t even kick into high gear until Diesel returned for 2009’s Fast and Furious, and the box-office numbers have been climbing astronomically since then. To say Universal owes Vin Diesel a gigantic debt of gratitude is an understatement, but exactly how much do they owe him? Would they actually let Diesel, who has little experience directing a movie let alone directing a movie on the scale of a Fast and Furious film, behind the camera of Fast and Furious 8? According to a new report, this may be what Vin Diesel wants and Universal is terrified.

Breaking news: people all over the world really like fast cars, movie stars, and constant references to family. Related: Furious 7 has just become the third highest grossing movie of all time, overtaking 2012’s The Avengers.

Furious 7 almost certainly won’t be the last Fast & Furious movie. But at times it feels like a series finale. There are numerous callbacks and homages to the franchise’s entire 15-year history. The setpieces are bigger and crazier than ever; it’s hard to imagine anyone topping them. And before the chases really get rolling, the mood is often downright mournful. Two different scenes are set in graveyards, and characters talk about taking “one last ride” together.

Helen Mirren is an Oscar winner and a multi-time Golden Globe winner. She has a few Best Actress awards from the Cannes Film Festival, and a couple Emmys as well. She’s a Dame of the British Empire. As far as actors go, she is amongst the most respected in the entire world.

Increasingly the Fast and Furious franchise has felt like a superhero franchise. A group of heroes with seemingly infinite strength and abilities taking on the bad guys and becoming a family in the process. It's like Avengers meets the Fantastic Four, but with a lot of cars. With the movies already up to Part 7 and Paul Walker sadly gone, the series can't go on forever. So, how do they continue the brand? Just like the superheroes do: with spinoffs.

A successful movie is a wonderful accomplishment. The perfect blend of writing, production, direction and acting that makes the story come alive.

If the Super Bowl spot and this morning’s extended trailer just weren’t enough for you ‘Fast and Furious’ fanatics, then we’ve got even more engine-roaring goodness for you. Universal has released a new official poster for ‘Furious 7,’ along with a whole gallery of images featuring some familiar faces (and some new ones) to get you all revved up for the upcoming sequel.

‘Fast and Furious 7’—the next installment in the best film franchise that isn’t Marvel—is coming this spring after some lengthy delays (it was originally scheduled to open last summer), and based on this new trailer, we couldn’t be more excited.

A ‘Fast and Furious’ Super Bowl trailer is almost as much of a tradition as the halftime show at this point. OK, maybe not quite that much, but the past two ‘Fast and Furious’ movies have had their ads, and now ‘Fast and Furious 7’ is here to follow up on that tradition. There are a lot of car commercials during the Super Bowl, but this is THE car commercial.

Earlier this week, it was reported that Justin Lin was being courted by Universal to return to the ‘Fast and Furious’ series after taking ‘Furious 7’ off and giving the director's seat to James Wan. It was also reported that his return would be be part of a two film “grand finale” that would send this beloved franchise driving off into the sunset. But that second part is just plain silly. Have you seen the box office receipts for these movies? So it should come as no surprise that the studio has “at least three” more Dominic Toretto and company adventures in the pipeline.

Justin Lin may return to direct "a multi-part production that will lead to multiple movies shot together and will wave the checkered flag on the 'Fast & Furious' franchise."