‘Fast and Furious 9’ Release Date Pushed Back Again
It’s been a year since the Fast & Furious 9 trailer first arrived online, a moment meant to build anticipation for the 2020 summer movie season. With Cardi B, Helen Mirren, and John Cena on deck, it was slated to be a major thrill ride.
Originally, the film was set to hit theaters May 22, 2020 but the global pandemic caused Universal Studios to delay it for one year. And now it’s pushing back opening day once again.
First ‘Fast & Furious 9’ trailer broke records
Though the Fast and Furious franchise sometimes garners jokes because of its mounting sequels, it still has a fan base. When the first Fast 9 trailer hit the web in 2020, several records were broken.
Within the first 24 hours of its release, it racked up more than 150 million views across multiple social media platforms, a new high for a Universal film. But after 72 hours, it beat out Avengers: Infinity War with 262 million views.
Two things helped: the timing and an accompanying concert featuring Cardi B and Ozuna. The launch happened days before the Super Bowl and quickly skyrocketed to nearly 500 million views in less than a week, and that translated to advance ticket sales.
But John Cena and Sung Kang’s Han also bumped up the allure of the film.
‘Fast & Furious 9’ moved to June 2021
Taking a cue from 2020, Universal reintroduced the hype for Fast 9 with an ad during Super Bowl 55. The physics-defying stunts, the lines about family, and action sequences are poised to pop out of the screen in 2021. Are fans ready?
This time, the film’s scheduled release date was set for May 28, but according to Deadline, it’s been moved again. Fast 9 will now arrive on June 25, 2021.
The reason? Per the outlet, Universal wants to align the film’s domestic release with its international showings. It is unclear whether the studio intends to make the movie available for streaming at the same time or weeks after its theatrical debut.
‘Fast 9’ will introduce Dom’s brother
John Cena is going to war with Vin Diesel’s Dom in this latest installment of the never-ending saga. Cena plays Dom’s brother Jakob who’s skilled as a driver and deadly assassin. He’s joined by Charlize Theron’s Cipher, a villain from the Fast and Furious past who really knows how to turn people against their crews.
In a recent interview, Diesel spoke to Entertainment Weekly about casting Cena in this film as a Toretto. He mentioned how director Justin Lin knew Jakob’s character had to be a specific type of guy.
“I felt like Justin did; the casting of that character could go a million different ways. And at the same time a very, very, very difficult character to cast,” said Diesel. “Because of that, you got to go with your gut, you got to go with your heart, and when I met John, he checked all the boxes. He had an energy that provoked a kind of curiosity about all of the Torettos,” he shared.
He’s also excited for fans to see Helen Mirren behind the wheel with him riding shotgun. Get ready for Fast 9 in June 2021.
