Fast And Furious Spinoff Eyeing Iron Man 3 Director

Dwayne Johnson is clearly a man who hates having free time and vacations, as is evidenced by his adding yet another movie to his upcoming slate--in this instance the announced Fast & Furious spinoff he will star in with Jason Statham. That said, while the movie won't debut in theaters until the summer of 2019, there's plenty to get excited about now.

Variety reports that while no meetings have taken place, the list of directors being considered to helm the movie includes none other than Shane Black. A veteran of action movies in his own right, Black is the writer and director behind titles like Iron Man 3, The Nice Guys and the upcoming The Predator, a sequel to 2010's Predators due in 2018. Even more impressive, he's also written The Monster Squad, Lethal Weapon, Lethal Weapon 2 and The Hunt for Red October, among a long list of other movies.

Given his film pedigree, the director would likely be a natural fit in the Fast & Furious universe, should he be chosen. The project would also present a new opportunity for Black, as he's never directed a film he didn't write. The script for the untitled spinoff is being written by Chris Morgan, who has also penned the last six Fast & Furious installments.

While a director has yet to sign on for the project, Johnson is having a hard time containing his excitement. In an Instagram post, the former wrestler writes, "Thank you UNIVERSAL STUDIOS for being tremendous partners who see the big picture and for coming to us years ago with this spinoff idea. Huge shout to my brother, Jason Statham for the trust and wanting to create and deliver something fresh and bad a** for the fans."

Not everyone in the Fast family is excited about the movie, though. In particular, co-star Tyrese Gibson has been an outspoken critic of the spinoff and how it seemingly pushed back the next Fast & Furious installment by a year, ranting about it on Instagram.

"Congratulations to @hhgarcia41 and @therock you guys are just amazing you really broke up the #FastFamily I tried to warn you guys," he writes. "I got 3 years of venting on this clown - They offered but YOU didn't have to agree with a solo #HobbsMovie."

While Johnson hasn't responded to his Fast co-star's comments, Vin Diesel did with an Instagram post of his own. Diesel, the top-billed star and producer of the films, wrote that the move isn't necessarily any one person's fault. Instead, he writes, "Like any vehicle that has run around the globe 8 times, the franchise is in need of maintenance. My good friend and the godfather of Universal, Ron Meyer has granted me the time to do just that."

The ninth Fast & Furious movie will arrive on April 10, 2020--nearly a year after the spinoff starring Johnson and Statham premieres on July 26, 2019.