Director Justin Lin said that a possible return of Hobbs and Shaw, played by Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham respectively, was quite possible within the franchise. During a recent interview to promote the new trailer for Fast & Furious 9, director Justin Lin recalled without hesitation that a return of Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham, the duo of the spin-off Hobbs & Shaw, was quite possible. A somewhat surprising news when we know that the former wrestler and the main actor and producer Vin Diesel had fallen out. It is recalled that it was the filmmaker who introduced the two characters into the Fast & Furious universe. The first appearance of Luke Hobbs (played by Dwayne Johnson) first appeared in Fast & Furious 5 while Deckard Shaw (played by Jason Statham) made his debut in Fast & Furious 6. The director, who is making his comeback for the staging of the last 3 films of the franchise, tells Deadline :
"For me, Hobbs and Shaw never really left the saga. They are still in this universe and are part of this family. I've never had any restrictions on them when we talk about the events of upcoming films. I'm excited and looking forward to working on the latest Fast & Furious games. I don't forbid myself, all the characters can come back in one way or another. »
In view of this surprise return, we are able to wonder if old characters will be back in the franchise. Given that the character of Han (Sung Kang) is back in episode 9, a face-to-face with Shaw – who was responsible for his "death" at the end of Tokyo Drift – could make sense in one of the sequels. Especially since Shaw eventually joined the "family" by saving Dom's son.A theory that would go hand in hand with the presence in the cast of the 9th part of Lucas Black, main character of Tokyo Drift. For the promotion of Hobbs & Shaw, The Rock already specified to MTV in 2019, that a return of the characters in the main saga was quite possible:
"The plan has always been to grow and expand the Fast & Furious universe. Jason Statham and I will not be present in Fast 9. With Fast & Furious 10, who knows what will happen? Who knows if Hobbs won't come back? When you think about it, the story between Hobbs and Dom is not over. There is a conclusion to filming."
Knowing that Justin Lin wants to bring back many characters for the conclusion of the famous saga, the return of Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham in movies 10 and 11 seems obvious. In August 2019, David Leitch's Hobbs & Shaw was released in cinemas. But the feature film didn't do as well as a film in the mother saga. However, it still brought in 759 million small greenbacks at the international box office against an estimated budget of 60 million. In comparison, Fast & Furious 8 had totaled $1.2 billion in revenue worldwide. And if you are a fan of the two companions, know that a continuation of the adventures of Luke Hobbs and Deckard Shaw is already planned. Fast & Furious 9 will be released in theaters on July 14th. In the meantime, we invite you to (re)watch the trailer, just to keep the ideas in place: https://youtu.be/FUK2kdPsBws
