A New Chapter for the Fast & Furious Franchise
It’s giving family! More than 25 years after the “Fast & Furious” franchise first hit the screen, Vin Diesel is making headlines with the announcement of a live-action television series based on the multi-billion-dollar action franchise. On Monday, Diesel, 58, who has been the cornerstone of the adrenaline-fueled street-racing and heist series, revealed that Peacock is officially working on the live-action TV show of the “Fast & Furious” franchise.
Taking “Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon by his side, Diesel shared the news at the NBCUniversal upfront presentation in New York. He stated, “For the last decade, we have realized that the fans have wanted more.”
He continued, “They wanted us to expand the legacy characters, their stories. And for the last decade, the desire has been for us to enter the TV space that Fallon has mastered.”
“And I had to wait till it was right,” Diesel continued, adding that the hunger to go big with the franchise started when Universal Pictures’ chief content officer Donna Langley ‘started to oversee.’
“It became right when Donna Langley started to oversee it all, because that’s when I knew that the integrity of the characters, the international appeal, what makes us all feel like family would be protected in the TV space,” shared the actor. “The news that I have here today is that Peacock is launching four shows from the ‘Fast and Furious’ universe.”
However, the news was not received as warmly as Diesel and the “Fast & Furious” cast would have expected. As the announcement came to the fore, the Internet did not leave any opportunity to express the mounting displeasure of milking a hit film franchise.
In a post shared by Discussing Film, one netizen declared, “this is when a franchise officially marks the beginning of the end, NO ONE wants this.”
“Nobody is asking for backstories, Hollywood is just terrified of creating something original,” added another.
“We actually wanted less. More has ruined this universe!” vehemently protested another fan.
Someone else added, “Bro the cast is like 50+ now.. what they stealing? A truck load of diapers?”
However, not everyone had the same opinion, as an invested ‘Fast & Furious’ fan even suggested, “they’re expanding on legacy characters hopefully that means more Letty Ortiz backstory.”
The Fast & Furious Series
The “Fast & Furious” series, featuring 11 feature films, follows Diesel’s Dominic Torretto through the streets of Los Angeles as he and his gang deal with illegal street racing to multi-million dollar heists. High profile stars including Paul Walker, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, John Cena, Jason Statham, Helen Mirren, Charlize Theron and many others have been part of the decades-spanning franchise.
While the plot of the upcoming series is yet to be revealed, Diesel shared that the show would honor the legacy of the series, per Variety.
The Creative Team Behind the Series
Mike Daniels of ‘Sons of Anarchy’ fame and Wolfe Coleman of “Lone Star” fame are credited as the co-showrunners and executive producers. They will also be writing the pilot of the show.
With Universal Television producing the series, Diesel is executive producing with Sam Vincent via One Race. Neal Moritz and Pavun Shetty of Original Film, Jeff Kirschenbaum and Chris Morgan and also acting as executive producers.
What’s Next?
As the details of the series continue to unfold, fans are eagerly awaiting more information about the upcoming projects. The announcement has sparked a mix of excitement and skepticism, with some hoping for deeper character development and others fearing that the franchise is losing its original charm.
The “Fast & Furious” universe is set to expand further, offering new stories and perspectives while staying true to the core values that made the franchise a global phenomenon. Whether this expansion will be well-received remains to be seen, but one thing is certain – the world of Dom Toretto is far from over.
