‘F9’s Big Game Spot Promises a Family Reunion “Soon”
F9 seems to be back on track for release. Your Fast Family is returning.
As the world tries to regain a semblance of normality through a long vaccination process while bringing down the COVID-19 cases of the third wave, some movie studios are already making moves and strategic decisions regarding their spring releases. New delays have (once again) hit movies such as No Time to Die, Uncharted, and Last Night in Soho; WB is doubling down on their theatrical plus HBO Max approach; and the folks at Disney are tackling their packed calendar one movie at a time, with Raya running towards a hybrid release and bigger stuff like Black Widow and Shang-Chi patiently waiting for an opening amidst the still shaky public health situation.
Many eyes are set on Universal’s F9 too, since it’s basically their only huge money-maker until Jurassic World: Dominion roars next year. The Justin Lin-driven ninth (actually tenth if we count Hobbs & Shaw) Fast Saga chapter was originally set to open last spring, but the pandemic forced Universal to bump it all the way back to April 2, 2021. After No Time to Die jumped to the same date (before finally settling on October 8), F9 boosted away again to May 28.
Last night’s Super Bowl ad wants to make us believe Dominic Toretto’s next rollercoaster ride is arriving soon despite Universal’s non-commitment to a solid release date:
“In theaters soon” alone is a bold choice of words for the final second of the spot, since everyone was fully expecting them to drive away from spring. Remember that Universal has no theatrical plus streaming release plans put in place, and they are in a position that requires them to make as much money as they can with this blockbuster. Even if people are willing to slowly trickle back into theaters starting this spring, the box office earnings probably won’t look somewhat decent until the end of the year.
Then again, things are looking up in Asia and especially China, where 2017’s The Fate of the Furious made over $350 million and became the biggest Hollywood release ever. Universal could actually profit from a theatrical-only release during the first half of 2021 if they play their cards right, leaving the road open for the tenth movie to start shooting ASAP and release next year.
Following the debut of the spot, director Justin Lin shared a sneak peek at the insane work behind one of the movie’s key action sequences, which looked totally digital in the preview but was actually very much practical:
One 4 second shot in #F9. 8 months of prep. 4 days of production. 3 cars destroyed. Work from over a hundred of the most dedicated and talented crew. Best job in the world! pic.twitter.com/QK4wNYvAhE
— Justin Lin (@justinlin) February 7, 2021
Francisco J. Ruiz is that guy who has watched Jurassic Park a thousand times and loves Star Wars. His hunger for movies is only matched by his love for video games. He graduated in English Studies from the University of Malaga, in Spain. As he keeps writing about what he enjoys (and doesn’t) for websites all over, he’s continuing his studies.
