Justin Lin has been considered a respectable director since his 2002 debut Better Luck Tomorrow. And while he has had commercial success with his first two Fast and the Furious installments, the incredible performance of this spring’s Fast Five ($603 million worldwide and a 78% Fresh grade on Rotten Tomatoes) has elevated Lin to superstar status, which he might use to help get the wayward Terminator franchise back on track.
Lin spoke with Moviehole about the status of his Terminator project, which was affected by the shifting of series ownership rights to a group led by Megan Ellison. He stopped well short of saying a fifth Terminator film was a done deal. There’s no script at the moment, and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s involvement, right now, appears to be a consulting role. Lin clarified that Arnold, of course, is "integral" to the franchise, and he’d even like to figure some way to involve the character of Sarah Connor, who he feels was shortchanged by subsequent Terminator sequels. But with nothing concrete to report, Lin merely said he has plans in place and is ready to execute once the green light is given.
We do know, however, that Lin is mounting a sixth Fast film for a 2013 release date. And while we expect to see new addition The Rock pursuing Vin Diesel and Paul Walker, Moviehole asked the director if there’s any chance Tokyo Drift lead Lucas Black could find his way back to the franchise.
"I love his character; that’s a little bit tough [though] because of the time line [Tokyo Drift being set after the events of these last two Fast movies]. We’re always looking [for a way to include him]," Lin elaborated. "And I think with the way this franchise is going too, is that it is going to expand in a big way if people are going to embrace Fast Six. So, a lot of these characters, they’re going to live. They live in this universe and I believe that the ones that people… I mean a lot of people have always said, ‘Where’s Lucas Black? Where’s Lucas Black?’ And he’s still in this universe, you know. And I don’t think he’s [disappeared] by any means."
So stay by your phone, Mr. Black. Lin could be calling soon.
