'Fast and Furious 8' News: Jason Statham and Dwayne Johnson To Return, Eva Mendes and Ruby Rose Joining Cast?
Even before the sequel has started production, fans of one of the biggest action-film franchises have more reasons to get excited about the upcoming "Fast and Furious 8," which is set to bow in theaters on April 14, 2017.
According to a report in Ecumenical News, two additional cast members have confirmed their return in the next movie and these are Jason Statham, as the villain Deckard Shaw, and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, as Agent Luke Hobbs. This is on top of Vin Diesel, who reprises his role as Dominic Toretto.
Beyond these confirmations, most of the other reports are unconfirmed rumors. According to a Cinema Blend report, there is a possibility that Eva Mendes may come back to reprise her role as U.S. Customs Agent Monica Fuentes, when she appeared early on in the franchise. This may be tied to another casting rumor that the Toretto crew may be working for Mr. Nobody's (Kurt Russell) underground organization, which will likely bring in lots of face time with different government agencies, according to Ecumenical News.
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The character Sean Boswell, played by Lucas Black way back in "Fast and Furious 3: Tokyo Drift," is also rumored to make an appearance. This is based on an earlier report that the actor Black originally signed on for three installments of the franchise and this would make it his second.
Ruby Rose, who is making a name for herself as a current cast member of "Orange is the New Black," also claimed that she has already auditioned for a part in the movie and that she is currently in negotiations to be part of it. No additional details were given about what her role will be, according to a report in Movie News Guide.
The previous film of the franchise, "Fast and Furious 7" was supposed to have been the first film of a final trilogy, but the sudden death of Paul Walker may have changed these plans. "FF7" however became one of the highest grossing films of the series, prompting Universal Pictures to go ahead with a sequel.
