Jason Momoa has signed on to star in the upcoming 10th entry of the Fast & Furious series. The SAG Award-nominated actor is rumored to play one of the villains in the action film’s ensemble cast, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The news marks the first major casting for the franchise’s next installment.
Fast & Furious 10‘s team officially welcomed Momoa into the cast via social media this afternoon. The series’ Twitter page features a post that’s captioned: “The Fast Fam keeps getting bigger. Welcome, Jason Momoa.”
Longtime franchise helmer, Justin Lin, who returned to the series with last year’s F9: The Fast Saga, is set to direct the next sequel. Fast & Furious 10‘s ensemble cast is set to also feature longtime franchise stars Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges and Sung Kang. Charlize Theron, who first appeared in the series’ eighth movie, The Fate of the Furious, and returned for F9, is also expected to appear in the upcoming 10th entry.
The Fast Fam keeps getting bigger. Welcome, Jason Momoa. #F10 pic.twitter.com/BsMGE6mCXD
— The Fast Saga (@TheFastSaga) January 28, 2022
Momoa’s casting in Fast & Furious 10 comes after Diesel, who’s also producing the anticipated drama with Lin, lobbied for Dwayne Johnson to return to the franchise. The latter actor starred in the series’ fifth through eighth installments, as well as the spinoff Hobbs & Shaw, but didn’t appear in F9. Diesel courted his former co-star to return to the franchise both privately and publicly, including on social media.
The actor-producer pleaded for the former WWE star to return to the main series in November through an Instagram post. Johnson then responded in an interview last month that there was “no chance” that he would reprise his role of Diplomatic Security Service agent Luke Hobbs, in part because he felt that his fellow actor was being manipulative.
As a result, Diesel helped lead the search to find another performer who could fill Johnson’s star power and physicality in The Fast Saga. It’s not yet know, however, who Momoa will play in the follow-up, as the script is still being finished. The franchise’s recent entries, however, have featured several anti-heroes who have been played by such actors as Jason Statham and John Cena.
Fast and Furious 10 is expected to begin shoots this spring. The series’ studio, Universal Pictures, is currently planning on releasing the next sequel on May 19, 2023. The upcoming feature is expected to be the penultimate installment in the franchise, which is expected to wrap up with its 11th film.
Momoa wrapped shooting the Aquaman sequel, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, last year. He can also be seen in the upcoming epic fantasy movie, Slumberland, which is based on the Winsor McCay comic strip from the early 20th century. The drama is set to be released on Netflix later this year.