After directing five films in the Fast & Furious franchise, director Justin Lin abruptly quit as director of the 10th installment in the series last week as filming had already begun.
A report citing an inside source now suggests that Lin’s decision to exit as director was due to a “difficult” Vin Diesel being involved with the production.
The move could also cost Universal Pictures quite a bit of money right now, even if the films tend to generate a hefty amount of revenue.
Source explains Vin Diesel caused Justin Lin to quit Fast X
Fast & Furious 10, also known as Fast X, had just started filming last week, and then, director Justin Lin announced he was leaving the project.
Lin, who had directed the Fast & Furious films since 2006’s The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, issued a statement through social media regarding his decision.
“With the support of Universal, I have made the difficult decision to step back as director of Fast X, while remaining with the project as a producer. Over 10 years and five films, we have been able to shoot the best actors, the best stunts, and the best damn car chases,” Lin said.
According to New York Daily News, a source with knowledge of the situation says Lin’s decision to quit is due to actor Vin Diesel, who has been the main star in the franchise since its inception.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. Lin’s giving up $10 or $20 million,” a veteran producer not involved with the film said.
“Diesel shows up late to the set. He doesn’t know his lines. And he shows up out of shape,” the NY Daily News source indicated.
While Lin has left as the film’s director, he’ll still be attached to the project as one of the producers.
When asked about the situation, a spokesman for Lin had no comment on the matter, while Vin Diesel’s rep hadn’t got back to New York Daily News about the subject.
The Rock quit the Fast franchise after several appearances
Actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson quit the Fast franchise five years ago, following appearances in four films alongside Vin Diesel. Johnson played the character Luke Hobbs, a United States Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) agent and bounty hunter.
After quitting the film, Johnson was vocal that it was due to some of the male cast members he’d been working with.
“My female co-stars are always amazing and I love ’em. My male co-stars however are a different story. Some conduct themselves as stand up men and true professionals, while others don’t,” Johnson said, per Time’s report.
“The ones that don’t are too chicken s–t to do anything about it anyway. Candy a**es,” he said.
In that final film he did, Johnson’s male co-stars included Scott Eastwood, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Kurt Russell, Lucas Black, Tyrese Gibson, and Vin Diesel.
The Rock went on to star alongside fellow action star Jason Statham in Hobbs & Shaw, a spinoff based on their characters from the Fast movies.
While The Rock didn’t say whether his comments specifically included Vin Diesel, the NY Daily News source believes he’s the reason for director Justin Lin’s exit.
Now, Universal Pictures is in the process of finding a new director. According to Variety, it could cost $600,000 to $1 million per day as they need to keep the cast and crew around until they’ve replaced Lin.
I wish that Justin Lin could have worked out any differences he had and stayed for this last film. He was such a big part of the franchise success and I’m sure the cast would want him to complete this very important and emotional ending to over 20 years of Fast and Furious. I wonder if Paul were still here that things would be different and he could convince Justin to stay. Anyway, Thank you Justin for all your hard work and for bringing your talented directing for all of us Fast fans to enjoy. Good luck on future endeavors.