We all love the Fast and the Furious franchise — but Universal Studios has some caveats before it’s willing to bankroll the final film in the series, particularly as they reportedly relate to the movie’s massive budget.
Over two years on from Fast X, the Wall Street Journal has reported that the next installment has not been officially announced just yet because it doesn’t have a release date on the books, or even a final script. Plus, many of the main cast members have not yet signed deals to return to the franchise.
Why? How? Well, considering the script currently doing the rounds would reportedly require a budget of approximately $250 million, the studio has allegedly told the filmmakers that it won’t greenlight production until expenses are cut by 20%. As for the why in all this, it appears to hinge on the returns from 2023’s Fast X, which was the lowest-grossing film for the franchise in over a decade with a $705 million take home over a $340 million budget.
The sequel film, tentatively titled Fast X: Part Two when it was announced, was originally supposed to hit theaters this year. Vin Diesel, the movie’s leading man, claimed last summer that the project will be released in April 2027, but nothing else confirms that date officially.
Back in June, Diesel opened up about the next installment during an appearance at Fuel Fest, a car enthusiasts event in Los Angeles.
“The studio said to me, ‘Vin, can we please have the finale of Fast and Furious [in] April 2027?’” Diesel told the crowd. “I said, ‘Under three conditions.’ First, is to bring the franchise back to L.A.! The second thing was to return to the car culture, to the street racing! The third thing was reuniting Dom and Brian O’Conner.”
Considering the late Paul Walker played Brian O’Conner, it’s anyone’s guess how Diesel plans to bring the fallen actor and his iconic character back to the franchise — but hopefully he’s not suggesting they digitally insert his likeness. Nobody wants that.
There’s also the question of Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s potential involvement in the film. In January, Vin Diesel walked back a dig he made at Johnson while presenting an award at the 2025 Golden Globes. Diesel posted an older photo of him and Johnson on Instagram alongside the caption “All love… Always,” after Diesel poked fun at the infamous feud between the pair by saying, “Hey, Dwayne,” during his award presentation and enjoying the audience’s laughter.
Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.
