‘Fast and Furious 6 & 7’ Eyes Jason Statham and a Back-to-Back Shooting Schedule

It seems unlikely that anyone who saw the original The Fast and the Furious would have guessed the film would be the starting point for one of Universal Pictures’ biggest franchises, but with five installments finished, the series has a worldwide box office total of over $ 1.5 billion dollars (just under $ 700 million of that was domestic). Clearly, these movies about tuner cars and the adventures of the guys who drive them are big business.

Now comes news that it may get even bigger. Twitch is reporting that Universal is exploring the option of shooting the sixth and seventh entries in the series back-to-back and in Europe. That would be pretty big news on its own, but the real bombshell here is that they’ve begun preliminary conversations with action star Jason Statham about joining the series. This makes so much sense, we’re amazed it didn’t happen sooner. Statham’s already done several films with lots of fancy driving – like The Transporter series – so he seems like a natural fit. Plus, if the locale for the next two movies is Europe, he’s essentially perfect for the part. This is all far from a done deal, but the possibilities are intriguing.

Director Justin Lin will be back behind the camera for both installments if Universal’s current plan pans out – and we assume it will, since Lin has already exited Terminator 5 to clear his schedule.

Are you excited for two more Fast and Furious flicks? If you’re on the fence about them, would the presence of Jason Statham be enough to get you to plop down your money for a ticket? Let us know in the comment section below.