Fast X

In November 2014, Universal Pictures chairwoman Donna Langley said there would be at least three more films in the franchise after Furious 7 (2015).[9] In April 2017, producer Neal H. Moritz stated that the tenth entry would serve as the finale for the franchise with Chris Morgan attached as screenwriter.[10] In October 2017, Justin Lin entered negotiations to direct the then untitled ninth and tenth installments, after directing four previous entries in the series.[11] In February 2020, Vin Diesel hinted that the film could be spilt in two parts.[12] By April 2022, a new draft of the screenplay was written by Lin and Dan Mazeau.[13]

In June 2021, Diesel revealed that Cardi B would reprise her role as Leysa in the tenth film, after the character debuted in F9 (2021).[5] Later that month, Diesel announced that the film would be split in a two-part culmination of the franchise, with principal photography commencing in January 2022 and taking place back-to-back.[14][15] In December 2021, Dwayne Johnson ruled out reprising his role for the film.[16] In January 2022, Jason Momoa was cast as a villain.[6] By March, Daniela Melchior joined the cast in an unnamed role.[7] In April 2022, Brie Larson was added to the cast.[8]

Principal photography began on April 20, 2022, with the film's official title revealed to be Fast X and cast members Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, and Charlize Theron all confirmed to reprise their roles.[2][3] According to Diesel, an earlier draft excluded Brewster's character, which he overturned.[17] The next day, Michael Rooker was confirmed to reprise his role as Buddy from F9.[4] The film's production budget is reported to be as much as $300 million, with over $100 million going towards the cast's salaries.[1]

A week after filming commenced, Lin exited the film as director due to "creative differences", leaving primary production stalled. However, Lin will remain on board as a producer.[18] Later reports alleged that Lin clashed on set with Diesel, who supposedly would arrive late and not know his lines.[19] Lin was also upset with rewrites to his script, as well as changing filming locations and one of the film's villains having yet to be cast.[1] Second unit production remained ongoing in the United Kingdom while the studio sought for a replacement director.[20] Universal Pictures is reported to have spent roughly $1 million a day to keep production paused.[21] F. Gary Gray and David Leitch, who previously directed The Fate of the Furious (2017) and Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2019) respectively, were considered by the studio to replace Lin, however neither were likely to step in due to commitments with other projects.[22][23] Furious 7 director James Wan, who was at one point considered to direct The Fate of the Furious but declined due to his straining experience on the project, was also considered a "viable option" but is also tied with commitments.[24][25] Variety reported that the hiring of an "A-list" director was not probable without drastic changes to the script and that Universal could turn to a second unit director who is "well-versed in big-budget action movies" instead.[26] On May 2, 2022, Louis Leterrier was announced as Lin's replacement.[27] Leterrier already had a previously established relationship with the studio and will begin filming in London once scheduling and contractual considerations are confirmed.[28][29]