After nearly two months of speculation, actressCharlize Theronhas officially joined the cast of Universal’sFast & Furious 8.Varietyreports that the actress is expected to play avillain, which falls in line with the first report that surfaced in early February, but no details about this character have been released. Production is expected to begin soon, with shooting scheduled to take place in New York, Atlanta, Cuba, Iceland and Russia.
Charlize Theronwas initially approached in February, but since the script byChris Morganhadn’t been completed yet, theOscar-winningactress didn’t want to commit to the project until the screenplay was done. Even after the script met with her approval, she still had some scheduling complications to work out, since she signed on to star in Sony’s spy thriller entitledThe Gray Manback in October. However, since the script was initially written for a male lead, rewrites were ordered, opening up a slot inCharlize Theron’s schedule that allowed her to joinFast & Furious 8.
Fast & Furiousfranchise starsVin Diesel,Dwayne Johnson,Jason Statham,Tyrese Gibson,Michelle RodriguezandLudacrisare expected to return. This new report comes just one day afterGame of ThronesstarKristofer Hivjujoined the cast, reportedly playing the villain’s primary henchman. No story details have been uncovered thus far, but the story will largely be set in New York City.
F. Gary Gray, who directed last year’sbox officesensationStraight Outta Compton, is taking the helm onFast & Furious 8, working from a script byChris Morgan. The writer is responsible for penning every movie in the series, except for the first two, 2001’sThe Fast and the Furiousand 2003’s2 Fast 2 Furious. Universal has already set an April 14, 2017release dateforFast & Furious 8.
Charlize Theronmost recently starred in the Oscar-nominated blockbusterMad Max: Fury Roadand the thrillerDark Places. She will next reprise her role as Ravenna in Universal’s sequelThe Huntsman: Winter’s War, which arrives in theaters April 22. She also lends her voice to LAIKA’sKubo and the Two Strings, set for release on August 19. What do you think aboutCharlize Theronportraying a villain inFast & Furious 8?
