With the success of "Fast and Furious 7", where Brian O'Connor (Paul Walker) graced a dramatic exit due to the actor's untimely demise, an eighth installment is coming up in 2017, referred to as "Fast 8". The movie will feature the return of the complete cast, alongside new members of the "family" who will add flavor to the race-and-drift adventures.
Dominic Torreto, portrayed by actor-producer Vin Diesel, comes back to the picture, together with Michelle Rodriguez who plays Letty Ortiz, Jordana Brewster as Mia Torreto, Ludacris as Tej Parker, and Tyrese Gibson as Roman Pearce. Despite Walker's unfortunate passing, NBC Universal confirms that the late actor will still be represented and will even be making appearances through a Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) of him, as his character is generally essential in the dynamics of the group.
Furthermore, Dwayne Johnson, who stars as Luke Hobbs, and Jason Statham, the archenemy of the entire team, Deckard Shaw, return to the set with surprises that will exhilarate the fans. Ronda Rousey and Sean Boswell also reprise their roles as Kara and Lucas Black, while speculations tease the comeback of Eva Mendez, who played the role of Agent Monica Fuentes in "2 Fast 2 Furious".
While these characters have become dear through the entire movie series, new characters are cast in the upcoming film, including Helen Mirren, Ruby Rose, Cara Delevingne, Scott Eastwood, Kristofer Hijvu, and Charlize Theron. Theron stars as Cipher, who is described by Rodriguez as "the most powerful villain this franchise has ever seen", through an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
The eighth chapter of the movie series, directed by F. Gary Gray, was shot in several places, including Cleveland, New York, Dubai, Brazil, Cuba, and Iceland.
According to CNN News, Universal Pictures released the news of its premiere date during a CinemaCon presentation. The film is scheduled to hit the cinemas on April 14, 2017, while the first "Fast 8" trailer will yet be released on Dec. 11, as announced by Diesel on Facebook.
Diesel also announces that the "Fast and Furious" series will end with a trilogy, wrapping up with "Fast and Furious 10". However, reports reveal that Diesel and Universal Pictures have been working out on spinoff ideas, drawing storylines for various characters. Primary release dates of the ninth and 10th installments are April 19, 2019 and April 2, 2021, respectively.