‘Deadpool 2’ Director David Leitch In Early Talks To Helm ‘Fast & Furious’ Spinoff

Universal Studios' upcoming untitled Fast & Furious spinoff, which stars Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham, may have found its director.

David Leitch In Talks To Direct Spinoff

Leitch, who has emerged as one of the best action filmmakers in the industry in recent times with some popular films under his belt, is in early negotiations to helm the Fast & Furious spinoff.

The stuntman-turned-director shot to fame after co-directing the 2014 cult hit John Wick with his stunt partner, Chad Stahelski. Stahelski handled the directing duties by himself for the film's sequel as Leitch took the director's chair for the Charlize Theron action thriller, Atomic Blonde.

The 2017 film landed him the job of the forthcoming Deadpool sequel after the film's original director, Tim Miller, walked out. Since the film is now in the post-production phase, Leitch was looking for his next gig, and after a meeting with execs and Johnson, he was seen as the top choice to helm the Fast & Furious spinoff. 

If Leitch is confirmed to helm the upcoming film, he will direct the project based on a script penned by Chris Morgan, who has served as a writer on six installments of the action-packed franchise.

Spinoff To Revolve Around Hobbs And Shaw

The follow-up to last year's The Fate of the Furious will focus on Johnson and Statham's characters from the film series. While Johnson plays the role of the fan-favorite Diplomatic Security Service agent Luke Hobbs, Statham made his debut in the series as antagonist Deckard Shaw in Furious 7.

Since his introduction to the franchise, Universal has been interested in a spinoff film based around Hobbs, given his popularity among fans. The studio found its opportunity with Statham's entry and the chemistry between the two characters in the last film and announced its plans to develop a spinoff.

The plot details of the film have been vague, but the main premise is that Hobbs and Shaw will form an unlikely alliance and take on a common enemy.

Universal has set a release date for the spinoff, but it is not yet known when the film is expected to start production. Johnson has a busy schedule ahead of him. The actor's upcoming roster of projects includes season 4 of Ballers as well as Disney's live-action Jungle Cruise movie.

The Fast & Furious spinoff will hit theaters July 26, 2019, with Fast 9 slated to hit theaters on April 10, 2020.