The Fast and the Furious franchise has a legion of fans but its latest installment seems to be hurtling toward a possible crash Film.
The penultimate film in the franchise Fast X is reputed to have a ballooning budget of $340 million. The initial budget for the film was $200 million and the outrageous price is said to be due to several factors.
Some of these include the increased salaries for series star Vin Diesel and the rest of the cast, general increases in production costs caused by inflation and charges for pandemic testing recruitments mandated by Covid-19 safety protocols.
The whole saga seems similar to what happened with Waterworld when cost overruns and a rocky production schedule led to the budget being blown up.
Its director Kevin Reynolds quit the movie before its release citing creative differences with Kevin Costner which appears to be the same scenario with Fast director Justin Lin leaving after clashing with Vin Diesel.
Louis Leterrier has since replaced Lin as director for Fast X. For the film to break even it would have to earn $500 to 550 million at the box office.
The film’s current budget places it as the fourth-most expensive film ever produced after Avengers Endgame, Avengers: Age of Ultron and Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides.
The tenth instalment will have Jason Momoa (Aquaman), Daniela Melchior (The Suicide Squad) and Brie Larson (Captain Marvel) joining the cast.
The franchise started in 2001 with the first film titled Fast & Furious and led to a number of sequels and video games as well as merchandise.
The ninth installment of the film earned $725 million at the worldwide box office.
The highest earning film in the franchise is actually Furious 7 which earned under $1.52 billion worldwide. That film was the final installment to have Paul Walker in it. The actor passed away in a single car accident in Santa Clarita, California in 2013 at 40. His brothers, Cody and Caleb Walker subsequently filmed the remaining scenes featuring him following his death.
Furious 7 also brought in Jason Statham and Nathalie Emmanuel for the first time.
Fast X will premiere on May 19, 2023.
Read More News:
Jane Fonda says she won’t be around for much longer after cancer diagnosis