Tell me if you’ve heard this before: Vin Diesel says “Fast Forever” will finally start shooting in December.
The actor made the claim at the 25th anniversary screening of “The Fast and the Furious,” saying production is expected to begin at the end of the year. The caveat, however, is that Diesel reportedly framed the December start around whether he can “make good on the request from the studio.” If you’ve been following the highly entertaining behind-the-scenes drama, then you know it has to do with Universal asking Diesel to make “Fast Forever” $140M cheaper than the last one, “Fast X.”
“Fast X” star Alan Ritchson, who is supposed to return for “Fast Forever,” recently mentioned that Universal and Diesel were currently “solving some big problems” on the final film and that it was “too expensive to make.”
Whenever Diesel claims something about this film, eyebrows need to be raised. Diesel has repeatedly suggested over the past few years that another “Fast & Furious” film was close to shooting, only for production to remain stuck in development. He has also teased “on-set” progress on other projects, including the next “Riddick” film, through social media, despite principal photography never happening.
“Fast Forever” is supposed to pick up from the cliffhanger ending of 2023’s “Fast X,” which left Dom Toretto and his family in serious peril. The delay has become increasingly noticeable, particularly because the previous film was conceived as the first half of a larger story. The longer the gap stretches, the more complicated it becomes to simply resume where “Fast X” left off.
“Fast X” ended on a true cliffhanger, with Dominic Toretto (Diesel) and his young son, Little B, seemingly trapped on a collapsing dam after Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa) detonated explosives. Little B, played by Brian Marcos, was still a child in “Fast X” and has obviously aged since then. The filmmakers will either have to ignore the discrepancy or abandon the cliffhanger altogether, making the “to be continued” ending feel pointless.
For now, “Fast Forever” is slated to hit theaters on March 17, 2028. Below, you’ll find the infamous cliffhanger of “Fast X,” which still makes me chuckle—not just because of its absurdity, but also because of the dilemma it has left Diesel and company in.
Whenever Diesel claims something about this film, eyebrows need to be raised. Diesel has repeatedly suggested over the past few years that another “Fast & Furious” film was close to shooting.