This whole thing with Universal struggling to find a director for Furious 8 has gotten a little crazy. It's been interesting because the long-lived franchise has never had trouble with directors before, and normally that would get easier since it is such an undeniable success. However that hasn't been the case, and only got more wonky when rumors surfaced that Vin Diesel may want to direct it himself, which shook Universal down to their boots. While Diesel has already addressed those rumors, he took to Facebook once more and only made things more confusing.
"I will share something crazy that my mother said six months ago after the studio had me announce the date for 8 to the world… “ Either you direct 8 yourself... or don’t do it.” Some of you vinbook pioneers are all too familiar with my mother’s wisdom, as I have posted her sayings in the past on Our page… but I wrote it off as just a mother’s love and belief in me, though she has seen first hand what I've done to make these movies defy expectations and become increasingly successful, even when the studio thought I was crazy... haha."
So it's Mama Diesel we have to blame for putting that idea in his head. And he's not really denying his interest, either, although he later goes on to say he wants Rob Cohen, director of the very first film in the franchise, to return. Cohen was apparently Paul Walker's choice to come back for one more movie and Diesel wants to make that wish happen. However, Universal aren't supporting that idea at all, nor are they likely to sign off on Diesel getting behind the camera. His only directing experience was the short film, Los Bandoleros, which was a prequel to Fast & Furious.
As for who could ultimately get the gig, Deadline adds a couple of names into the mix. First and most prominent is Louis Leterrier, the director of Now You See Me and The Incredible Hulk. The other is Ericson Core, who had the unenviable task of remaking Point Break. So both are high-octane action filmmakers who could be a good fit.
And then there's the matter of the script, which is still some ways off from being completed. For now, Furious 8 is slated to open April 14th 2017.
