Universal Pictures has set a May 21st release date in China for “F9: The Fast Saga” – a full five weeks before the film’s bow in the United States.
In fact numerous non-English speaking countries are getting it on that day including Russia, South Korea, the Middle East, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, and Vietnam.
The early offshore release dates reflect the recovery of overseas markets, especially in Asia, where audiences have demonstrated they are eager to return to cinemas when product is available.
China in particular has become the top overseas market for the franchise with more than $1 billion across five films.
The film’s director Justin Lin tells Heat Vision that F9 marks the first of a trilogy of films that serve as the franchise’s final chapter with Lin to helm all of them:
“I was thinking of it as one chapter. It became very clear to me that if we were going to do that, we were going to need some real estate. To the studio’s credit, it was like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it.’ That’s what we’ve been doing since I’ve been back…processing it as almost like a trilogy as a final chapter.”
Lin at present is in the process of writing the final two installments saying “I know we’ve been talking about the final chapter for about ten years, and now that we’re starting to see it come to life, it’s very gratifying.” He’s also open to characters returning including Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) and Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson):
“I never really considered them gone, you know? To me, they’re still in this universe; they’re part of this family. Whatever we do, whenever we’re talking about the next chapter, I never feel like I have any restrictions, so I’m excited for what we build, and as we’re coming to this kind of final chapter of this saga, I think I’m excited to revisit.”
He adds that he’s not sure when filming will begin but it won’t be this year. He also confirmed that they did consult actual scientists to make the sub-orbital. action scenes in “F9: The Fast Saga,” briefly glimpsed in the recent trailer, at least somewhat believable.
