Despite the growing concerns regarding the coronavirus outbreak around the world, Vin Diesel insists F9, the ninth film in the blockbuster Fast & Furious franchise, will not be pushed back. F9 is the penultimate installment of the franchise, with next year’s tenth film expected to bring everything to a close. Back in January, the first trailer hyped the film’s insane action sequences while introducing John Cena’s Jakob, who is also Dom Toretto’s (Diesel) brother. The trailer further served up a massive surprise by revealing Han (Sung Kang), long thought to be dead, has returned.
The coronavirus outbreak has had a serious impact on the entertainment industry in recent weeks. SXSW was cancelled last week after several exhibitors pulled out of the event, and many other conventions have done the same. Due to worries of decreased movie theater attendance, MGM and Universal opted to push back No Time to Die, Daniel Craig’s last outing as James Bond. It was initially set to premiere in April, but now audiences will have to wait until November to see the film. Now moviegoers are wondering if other films will be moved from their initial release dates.
However, fans can rest assured that F9 will be arriving on time. Following a report that Universal will be keeping F9‘s release in May, Diesel has come forward with his own assurances. While promoting his upcoming comic book adaptation Bloodshot with USA TODAY, Diesel compared F9‘s release to the titular character in Bloodshot by saying, “Let me put it to you this way: ‘Bloodshot’ at the end of the day is a soldier and a soldier doesn’t decide or pick when or where he’s deployed. We’re going to go in.” Diesel then said that while he understands why people are surprised certain movies are keeping their release dates, he believes “we need movies now more than ever. We’re already in a very interesting time where cinema and the cinematic experience is so threatened. So, yes, put it on record we’re going to show up.”
F9‘s May release date might not be an issue for the film’s box office prospects, since that’s still two months away and things can change. Bloodshot, however, is arriving in theaters this week. While no one is expecting it to be a massive hit due to its lesser-known source material and limited marketing, it could also stand to be impacted by the coronavirus as people opt to stay away from public places.
Diesel’s stance that we need movies now more than ever is admirable and certainly strikes a cord. Movies have always been seen as an escape from every day stresses, so it’s comforting to hear that there are others who agree and are determined to keep things moving on as normal. The Fast & Furious franchise is typically very popular in China, so it will be interesting to see how F9 performs there in two months. Again, a lot can change in that time, so at this point it’s too early to speculate. The one thing that can be certain is that Dom and his family will be arriving on time.
Key Release Dates
F9: The Fast Saga1
Release Date:2021-06-25
