"Fast & Furious": TV series officially announced by Vin Diesel – but one detail is confusing
The star may have been mistaken in a statement
Thanks to Vin Diesel, the "Fast & Furious" franchise shows no signs of slowing down, even after all these years. Quite the contrary: In addition to the long-planned new film "Fast Forever," a TV series for the streaming service Peacock has now been officially announced.
During the NBCUniversal upfront presentation in New York, lead actor Vin Diesel took the opportunity to announce the good news himself. The star took the stage and explained:
"For the last decade, we have realized that the fans have wanted more. They wanted us to expand the legacy characters, their stories."
Shortly thereafter, when he got specific and addressed the planned TV series adaptation, he said something that has since caused some confusion. Diesel emphasized:
"The news that I have here today is that Peacock is launching four shows from the 'Fast & Furious' universe."
Fast & Furious: Vin Diesel mentions four series – but there's a contradiction
Variety is now reporting, however, that not four, but only one "Fast & Furious" series is reportedly in development. The industry publication cites an unnamed "individual with knowledge of the situation" who confirmed this. The Hollywood Reporter also reports that, according to a source at Peacock, only one series is in the works. Either way, fans can look forward to more adventures from the "Fast & Furious" universe.
Details about the plot are still under wraps at this time. It is therefore also unclear which familiar characters will appear in the TV version. Vin Diesel did promise, however, that the series will live up to the legacy of the films. Behind the scenes, a few roles have already been filled. Mike Daniels and Wolfe Coleman will write the pilot script and serve as co-showrunners. They are also on board as executive producers alongside Vin Diesel, Sam Vincent, Neal Moritz, Pavun Shetty, Jeff Kirschenbaum, and Chris Morgan.
Fast & Furious: A success story
The "Fast & Furious" film series has evolved into a massive blockbuster franchise over the years. It all began with the first installment in 2001. Back then, no one would have expected it to develop into such a long-running and financially successful film franchise. Especially since the first film is, in essence, suspiciously reminiscent of another classic of the action genre. Much like in Kathryn Bigelow's "Point Break," "The Fast and the Furious" also centered on a hero (played by Paul Walker, who passed away in 2013) who goes undercover and develops a special relationship with his supposed antagonist (Vin Diesel). While "Point Break" focused on the surfing scene, "The Fast and the Furious" centered on street racing.
In "2 Fast 2 Furious" and "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift," Dominic "Dom" Toretto, portrayed by Vin Diesel, was not the star anymore. That changed, however, with the fourth installment: "Fast & Furious" served as a sort of reset for the film series. Alongside Vin Diesel, other protagonists from the first film also returned, including Paul Walker, as well as Michelle Rodríguez as Leticia "Letty" Ortiz and Jordana Brewster as Mia Toretto. Dom Toretto's crew was now clearly the focus – and the subsequent films would continue to build on the story of this fourth installment.
After that, there was no stopping them: The "Fast & Furious" films became increasingly elaborate, expensive, and successful. The climax came with "Furious 7." With a massive global box office haul of $1.5 billion, the seventh installment not only became the most successful in the series. Overall, the blockbuster also holds its own in terms of box office success: "Fast & Furious 7" ranks 14th among the most successful films of all time. Neither the sequels nor the spin-off "Hobbs & Shaw" came close to that. Still, the subsequent "Fast & Furious" films were certainly successful as well. And so it comes as no surprise that the next installment, "Fast Forever," is set to hit theaters in 2028. It is reportedly conceived as a sort of finale for the "Fast & Furious" film series. However, as the planned TV series shows, the franchise seems far from over. Who knows: maybe we'll see Dom Toretto back on the big screen again sometime after "Fast Forever."
