Furious 8 director looks to be F. Gary Gray
Following word yesterday that the Furious 8 director frontrunners had narrowed to four names, Vin Diesel has revealed that it’s now down to one – Straight Outta Compton director F. Gary Gray. Diesel posted the above photo of himself with Gray from their talks about the next installment in the “Fast & Furious” franchise.
The news comes just days after word broke that Diesel was pitching Universal Pictures the thought of having original The Fast and the Furious helmer Rob Cohen to direct the eighth big screen installment, or perhaps even Diesel taking it on himself. At the time, Diesel said they are looking to close out the franchise with a final trilogy. But yesterday, the list of potential Fast 8 helmers was said to be Straight Outta Compton‘s F. Gary Gray, Now You See Me‘s Louis Leterrier, The Signal‘s Will Eubank and You’re Next and The Guest‘s Adam Wingard. Diesel is a producer on the films, but he has no final say on the director.
Gray has worked before with Diesel on A Man Apart and his credits also include The Italian Job, The Negotiator and Law Abiding Citizen. His $28-million budgeted Straight Outta Compton, released by Universal, earned an impressive $160 million domestically after opening in theaters on August 14.
Diesel announced Fast 8 at this year’s CinemaCon after the unprecedented success of the seventh film, which earned $1.511 billion at the worldwide box office, and he along with Jason Statham, Dwayne Johnson and Kurt Russell are expected to return, along with franchise regulars Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Elsa Pataky and Lucas Black reprising their roles as street racers-turned-international criminals-turned-super-secret agents. Universal Pictures will deliver Furious 8 for an April 14, 2017 release.
What do you think of F. Gary Gray as the Furious 8 director? Let us know in the comments below!
UPDATE: F. Gary Gray has confirmed on Twitter that he’s signed to direct Furious 8.
Cant ask for better partners than Vin, Neal & Universal. Excited to bring u the next chapter of the #FastFamily saga pic.twitter.com/zRGre14kKO
— F Gary Gray (@FGaryGray) October 8, 2015
