With “F9” now rescheduled for 2021, due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, it appears that ‘Fast & Furious’ fans are going to have to watch ‘Hobbs & Shaw’ a few more times to hold them over until the next installment in the franchise hits the big screen. And though ‘Hobbs & Shaw’ might not have made $1 billion and dominated the box office in the same way that the recent ‘Fast’ films have, the movie is popular enough with fans that it looks like a sequel is in the works. Shocking, I know.
In a recent Instagram Q&A (via Comicbook.com), Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson discussed the current status of ‘Hobbs & Shaw 2.’ And while there’s not much to say, the film is actually moving forward.
“We are developing now the next film, the next [‘Hobbs & Shaw’] movie, and I’m pretty excited about it,” Johnson said. “[We] just gotta figure out the creative right now, and the direction we’re going to go.”
For those that saw the film, the original ‘Hobbs & Shaw’ saw the title characters, The Rock and Jason Statham, respectively, team up to fight off a superpowered Idris Elba. The film is notable for being the first spin-off of the popular ‘Fast’ franchise and one of the rare films in the series to not include Vin Diesel. And while ‘Hobbs & Shaw’ earned $759 million at the box office, the film failed to reach the heights that the franchise has achieved in recent sequels. So, the idea of a sequel to ‘Hobbs’ wasn’t a guarantee.
That being said, Universal would have been stupid not to do a sequel, especially if everyone on board is happy to come back and there’s a decent story to tell. Honestly, as the first film proved, the story is actually secondary and not a true requirement.
Will ‘Hobbs & Shaw 2’ include Keanu Reeves as has been teased? Will Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Hart have bigger roles? It appears we’ll find out soon enough.