Though she has appeared as Letty in most of the more recent Fast & Furious instalments, Michelle Rodriguez had been frustrated for some time at the lack of genuine female representation in the movies, both in front of and behind the camera. Now, speaking at the Bloomberg Future of Equality Summit in London, Rodriguez has announced that she'll be back for the ninth film because a key demand in her hope for the future of the franchise has been met.
"I felt like there was not enough of a female voice in the franchise," Rodriguez said. "You should evolve with the times, not just pander to certain demographics that are stuck in the past." According to her, part of her requirement for jumping back into the films was that Universal and producers such as Fast star Vin Diesel should hire a female writer to contribute to the script. No official announcement has been made on that front, but it would seem that she's happy with the progress made. Diesel himself said on Instagram earlier this year that Nicole Perlman, Lindsey Beer, and Geneva Robertson-Dworet would develop the script for a female-focused spin-off, so perhaps they'll also help out on the new main screenplay.
So far, not much is known about Fast & Furious 9 (or whatever punny title it might carry), beyond the return of Diesel and some of the gang (no Dwayne Johnson or Jason Statham this time, they've been busy with their own spin-off, Hobbs & Shaw) and the return of Justin Lin to direct.
The new movie is currently taking aim at a May 2020 release.
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