It was recently announced that Fast & Furious is heading to the small screen in a major way, with Vin Diesel producing a TV series expansion.
For longtime fans of the franchise, this is huge news, as it brings the Fast & Furious universe beyond the big screen in live action for the first time.
Film News Blitz writer Jonathon House reports.
The history of the ‘Fast & Furious’ franchise
The first Fast & Furious film was released back in 2001, and fans have loved the franchise ever since.
In total, 10 core films and one spin-off, Hobbs & Shaw, have been released, with an 11th and supposedly final chapter in the saga, Fast Forever, slated for release in 2028.
What began as a street-racing series has expanded into a large-scale, globetrotting action extravaganza.
Over the years, audiences have especially loved Diesel’s performance as Dominic Toretto, with many believing his character has been one of the main reasons for the franchise’s success.
Toretto has been a mainstay in the franchise, with other key characters including the late Paul Walker’s Brian, Michelle Rodriguez’s Letty, Jordana Brewster’s Mia, Tyrese Gibson’s Roman, Ludacris’ Tej, Sung Kang’s Han and Dwayne Johnson’s Hobbs.
Four ‘Fast & Furious’ TV shows announced
The announcement of the new Fast & Furious TV shows was made on stage during Monday’s NBCUniversal Upfront presentation.
“For the last decade, we have realised that the fans have wanted more,” Diesel said (via People).
“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.”
According to Diesel, four different shows are currently in development.
This would massively expand the franchise and allow more development for many characters fans already know and love.
While Diesel noted four separate shows are planned, NBCUniversal confirmed just one is in development courtesy of Peacock and Universal Television.
Diesel will serve as an executive producer, while co-showrunning duties will be carried out by Mike Daniels (Sons of Anarchy) and Wolfe Coleman (Shades of Blue).
This marks the first time Fast & Furious has been adapted for the small screen in live action, after the animated Netflix series Fast & Furious Spy Racers, which ran from 2019 through 2021.
As for the film franchise, Fast Forever will look to expand upon a $7 billion worldwide gross at the box office upon its release in cinemas.
Will the TV show live up to the hype?
As Fast & Furious has been a long-running franchise, the new TV series will need to appeal to a wide audience.
While the franchise still has a massive fanbase, there are also many people who feel the series has gone on for too long and should perhaps take a break.
That being said, the universe is clearly continuing to expand, and many fans will definitely tune in.
The shows will likely attract strong viewing numbers, but audiences will also be curious to see whether the franchise can successfully make the transition to television, while capturing what made the movies so popular in the first instance.
READ NEXT – Film news: Everything you need to know about ‘Backrooms’ before its release
