Tuesday, July 23, 2019

“FAST AND FURIOUS 9” Puts Filming ON HOLD Following ON-SET Mishap



Next month, two of the biggest physical powerhouse characters from the long-running vehicular action film series “Fast and Furious” will premiere their own spinoff adventure from Universal Pictures, “Hobbs and Shaw.” This movie features Dwayne Johnson’s DSS Agent Luke Hobbs and Jason Statham’s ex-UKSF-turned-mercenary Deckard Shaw for some teeth-clenched teamwork against a rogue British agent-turned-terrorist with superhuman abilities portrayed by Idris Elba. It is all well and good but fans will likely want to get back to the real action, the ninth “Fast” film starring franchise face Vin Diesel. It might have to wait a bit because filming has stalled due to an on-set accident.

USA Today tells us that principal photography for “Fast and Furious 9” was temporarily halted this Monday, July 22. This was due to a serious set injury at the Warner Bros. UK Studios in Leavesden, England. A stuntman on the production had an accident while filming an action sequence, requiring that he be evacuated by medical airlift according to a spokesperson for Universal Pictures. "We have halted production for the day to focus on this situation,” the spokesperson said to the press. Leavesden Studios has been used for big-budget blockbuster film photography, particularly franchises like “Harry Potter” and “James Bond.”

No details were shared by the studio and production regarding the unidentified stuntman, such as how he came by his injury. Speculation on the cause by UK tabloid The Sun postulate that the stunt actor was in the middle of a high-level action sequence when he fell, possibly sustaining head injuries upon impact. The incident occurred within seven days from a similar and more fatal accident on the set of “Titans,” a live-action superhero series on the DC Universe streaming platform. It involved special effects director Warren Appleby, killed while testing SFX in studio facilities.

“Fast and Furious 9” stars returning cast members Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, plus new additions Anna Sawai and John Cena. It is expected to pick up from the cliffhanger ending of 2017’s “Fate of the Furious” as Dom Torretto (Diesel) tries to wrap up unfinished business with nihilistic and omnicidal cyber-terrorist Cipher, played by Charlize Theron. Theron will return to reprise her role along with Helen Mirren as the mother of erstwhile enemy-turned-ally Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), who as stated earlier is co-starring with Dwayne Johnson for “Hobbs and Shaw.”

The official ninth installment of the “Fast and Furious” franchise will premiere in cinemas on May 2020. Meanwhile, the “Hobbs and Shaw” spinoff with Johnson and Statham will be released next month on August 2.

Image courtesy of SlashFilm

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