Universal Surprises With ‘The Fate of the Furious’ Screening at CinemaCon
Vin Diesel got out of his chair and stood up during Universal’s presentation at CinemaCon on Wednesday to make a surprise announcement: the studio was about to show “The Fate of the Furious” to everyone in attendance.
“The last time I was standing on this stage, I promised you that this would be the best movie you ever saw,” Diesel said. “To prove that, we’re going to show you the whole movie right now.”
The announcement followed a discussion with cast members including Kurt Russell, Charlize Theron, Tyrese Gibson and Ludacris. Diesel kicked things off by reflecting on having the opportunity to make an eighth movie in a franchise.
“We’re so fortunate to have this saga continue for so long,” he said. “With that great fortune comes the challenge: How do you continue? How do you reinvent yourself and defy expectations? One of the things that we’re so proud of with this chapter, is how much we defied expectations.”
One major twist of “The Fate of the Furious” is that Vin Diesel plays a bad guy this time around, but it’s unclear why his character Dominic switches sides in the sequel. “There are reasons,” Diesel said. “There’s always a reason.”
READ MORE: ‘The Fate of the Furious’ Trailer: Charlize Theron Enters the Fray — Watch
The conversation turned emotional when Diesel paid tribute to his late friend Paul Walker. “Part of Paul’s legacy lives through every frame that we shoot,” said Diesel. “You’re reminded of this angel that was so integral to this concept of brotherhood for our millennium.”
“The Fate of the Furious” opens on Friday, April 14.
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