"Fast & Furious 8" is scheduled to premiere on April 14, 2017. (Photo : YouTube/Clevver Movies)
The long awaited "Fast & Furious 8" comes with the excitement and cliffhanger of the late Paul Walker's character, Brian O'Conner. Walker's sudden death left everyone in shock, including the "Fast & Furious" franchise development team.
Cody Walker, Paul's brother, was then invited to film his brother's remaining scenes. It is now official that the younger Walker will come back for "Fast & Furious 8."
Although the older Walker's character did not necessarily die in the seventh installment, he did say goodbye to the crew, facilitating an exit of O'Conner after all these years. Ron Meyer, the vice-chairman of NBC Universe, shared that the franchise is not done with O'Conner, as the character is yet to wrap up with his "Fast & Furious" family.
Meyer as well confirmed the comeback of the younger Walker, with the creator of the series pointing out that the next entry would take a different direction while providing a new representation of the older Walker and his character. Furthermore, there are rumors that the next villain in the franchise will be played by Charlize Theron. The actress is currently attached to Sony's "The Gray Man."
Since "The Gray Man" is undergoing a redesign to switch the main character from male to female - after the role was reportedly meant for Brad Pitt initially - Theron may have some time to fix "Fast & Furious 8" in her schedule, according to The Guardian.
Previous members of the cast will come back for the upcoming installment, including Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jason Statham, and Dwayne Johnson. Theron joining the cast implies that the franchise could be getting a new member on the team, in addition to a possible female villain, not just for "Fast & Furious 8" but also for the rest of the sequels, Variety noted.
However, there is always the bad side of every great rumor. Casting Theron the lone villain of the upcoming movie implies that Helen Mirren's hopes to play the Shaw family matriarch will not come true. There are high chances that Theron's character could yet be another member of the Shaw brood, mist likely Statham's sister, a move that would open an opportunity for Mirren to come into picture in either "Fast 9" or "Fast 10," posed as Mother Shaw.
"Fast & Furious 8" will hit the theaters on April 14, 2017. Watch the sneak peek below for more information.
