Waching daily Oct 5 2017

Fast & Furious 9 Delayed Until 2020; Is It Because of The Rock?

For those waiting for Fast & Furious 9 to race into theater, that wait has just been extended by almost an entire year. Universal Pictures has pushed its Fast & Furious 9 release date from April 19, 2019 to April 10, 2020.

While no reason for the shift has been given, there could be a few reasons for the shift, including the fact that no director has been attached yet, while another could be that the studio may want to launch a rumored spin-off first.

Last month, Fast & Furious franchise star Dwayne The Rock Johnson posted a cryptic photo that some believed could have featured the actor signing his contract for a long-rumored Hobbs spin-off movie, that would reportedly also feature Jason Stathams character Deckard Shaw.

While nothing has been officially announced yet, the actors franchise co-star Tyrese Gibson called out The Rock on his Instagram, stating that if he moves forward with the Hobbs movie, he would have ignored the heart-to-heart chat they both had together, with Tyrese adding that he was only on his Instagram timeline because he wasnt responding to his text messages.

Just a day later, Tyrese Gibson clarified that he didnt have any problems with The Rock, stating that hes his brother, adding that he just didnt want The Rock to shoot this Hobbs movije now, because the Fast & Furious 9 release date has already been announced, adding, we cant let our loyal fans #FastFamily or our loyal fast and furious FANS down on any level from pushing the date.

Tyrese Gibson went on to add that this years The Fate of the Furious was so huge because, we announced and KEPT our release date bro.

While it certainly is intriguing that the Fast & Furious 9 release date has now in fact been pushed, just weeks after Tyrese Gibsons Instagram message, there still hasnt been any official announcement for this Hobbs spin-off, which will presumably now take Fast & Furious 9s now-vacated April 19, 2019 release date.

As of now, Fast & Furious 9 doesnt have any direct competition, but Universal had to push its animated sequel Trolls 2 from the April 10, 2020 slot to February 14, 2020, where it will face 20th Century Foxs Nimona and an unspecified DC Films project.

Universal hasnt yet announced whether this will impact its plans for the final franchise installment, Fast & Furious 10, which has been slated for release on April 2, 2021.

Fast & Furious 9 also made headlines this summer after it was reported that franchise star Michelle Rodriguez may bail on the franchise, if the filmmakers and producers dont start treating its women better, while The Fate of the Furious director F. Gary Gray, who hasnt been confirmed to return for Fast & Furious 9, wouldnt rule out the possibility of the franchise heading to outer space.

This all came just months after The Rock and Vin Diesel reportedly ended their feud that started on the set of The Fate of the Furious, with a report from April claiming that both Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson were attached to return in Fast & Furious 9.

However, todays report from The Hollywood Reporter states that Vin Diesel is in fact set to return, although the report stated that its unclear if Dwayne Johnson will be back. Hopefully well find out more about this potential spin-off and Fast & Furious 9 in the very near future.