It was earlier this week when word started floating that Universal was looking toward Justin Lin to helm the final movie(s) in the "Fast & Furious" franchise. The news seemed odd, considering the series is more than healthy at the moment, and is one of the star players in Universal’s tentpole stable. It’s likely that if Lin, who has helmed four entries in the gasoline smelling series, will be back, it won’t be for a while yet.
During studio executive roundtable for THR, Universal honcho Donna Langley revealed there’s still plenty in the tank for the Vin Diesel starring vehicle. "We think there’s at least three more. Paul [Walker] is, and always will be, an integral part of the story. But there are many other great characters, and it’s also an opportunity to introduce new characters. I think it’s still a growing franchise," she said. "We’ll see what happens with ‘Furious 7,’ obviously, but our box office has grown over the past three or four films and internationally, in particular. So we think that there’s more to mine there. But we’re of course very mindful about fatigue."
Basically, Langley is saying, "we’ll keep making these movies until the audience grows tired of the franchise or it or they stop making money." And yeah, that’s what we figured. It made no sense that the studio would be looking to finish things up, when "Fast & Furious," headed into its seventh movie with "Furious 7," has never been in better shape. And while anything can happen, there’s probably no doubt it’ll be huge when it lands on April 3, 2015.
Anyway, let us know if you have the endurance for three more movies of cars skidding and jumping off stuff and explosions and Vin. And check out the 1-hour executive chat below. [via Slashfilm]
