Vin Diesel Says Michael Lesslie’s ‘Fast Forever’ Script Made Him Cry; Director Louis Leterrier Confirms Filming Hasn’t Started

There had been some miscommunication from “Fast Forever” (“The Fast & The Furious 11”) star Vin Diesel earlier in the summer as many had thought he was announcing that the final mainline installment in the Universal Pictures franchise had started production, but that had been subsequently debunked and ultimately revealed to be some ad made for The World Cup.

And there is now further confirmation that cameras indeed haven’t started rolling after the movie’s director Louis Leterrier (“The Incredible Hulk”), who stepped in to replace Justin Lin on “Fast X,” has revealed to the folks over at Polygon (while promoting “The Last House“) that he’s been too busy with finishing up another movie to have started “Fast Forever,” and wasn’t ready to comment on Diesel’s other recent revelvation, he’s read the film’s script and made him “cry.”

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“There is a parallel universe” where they would have gone straight from Fast X into filming the next film (there had been plans to shoot them back-to-back but didn’t happen), Leterrier said of the 11th installment being sort of on pause. “It’s like a combination of [‘Fast 11’] not going…we were supposed to go straight into it, then the strike, me finding this script .” When asked about if he’s currently making “Fast Forever,” his response was, “Not currently because I’m finishing another movie, but yeah,” he said. “This franchise will have an ending. They built a ride!” he joked with the outlet. “They have to finish it. Someone has to end it.”

“Well, uh, I’d love to tell you the full truth, but I can’t [laughs]…There will be an ending, and it’s great. I was very, very lucky to be part of the franchise, and I love Vin, and I love Universal. They’re great to work with. So yeah. We’ll see, hopefully,” the director said when directly questioned if he had read the script and had been just as touched as Diesel was when he read a draft penned by Michael Lesslie (“X-Men”).

“I just read the ‘Fast Forever’ script by Mike [Lesslie]. It is the best script I have read in decades. I am still crying,” Diesel said in an Instagram post promoting the re-release of the original film in theaters. He also reiterated the film’s release date is still slated for March 17, 2028, by Universal, which to us telegraphs a possible 2027 production start.

There had been some sort of teases from Diesel in the past that he was pushing Universal to bring back Paul Walker‘s Brian O’Connor for the final installment, although his tasteful send-off had led to some backlash and skepticism from fans. We’re still a tad puzzled how they could execute that without simply recasting the part with a new actor. That said, the previous new additions to the franchise in “Fast X” included Jason Momoa, Brie Larson, Alan Ritchson, and Daniela Melchior.

The franchise isn’t ending completely; this year it was revealed that a TV series is in the works at Peacock. In the future, Diesel has been mostly focused on legacy roles, most recently with David Twohy-directed “Riddick: Furya” (we’re unsure if it has finished filming or what the current status is), and is gearing up for a sequel to Lionsgate‘s “The Witch Hunter.”

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Leterrier’s new film “The Last House,” starring Greta Lee (“Past Lives”) and Wagner Moura (“The Secret Agent”), will debut exclusively on Netflix on August 7.