There's a lot to love in The Fate of the Furious, but one of the most universally praised aspects of the entire film is the relationship between Hobbs (The Rock) and Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) as they hunt Dom (Vin Diesel) around the globe. The two action icons have established themselves as one of the best pairings in the entire franchise, which has led many fans to clamor for a spin-off centering solely on their dynamic. Now it seems that director F. Gary Gray has heard these demands, and he's on board with the idea. The director recently sounded off on the possibility in a commentary track for The Fate of the Furious' newly released Blu-ray, saying:
You could just feel the energy between the two. I think something's going to come out of it, you know? We'll see, but I definitely wouldn't mind seeing a two-hander between Shaw and Hobbs.
While this is a decision that will ultimately be made by the folks at Universal, it's hard not to agree with F. Gary Gray on this matter. As the Fast and Furious franchise moves into more outlandish territory, it becomes increasingly more important to introduce characters who can convincingly convey the newly ramped up stakes. With these films moving away from street racing as a core concept, and more towards international espionage, career soldiers and spies like Shaw and Hobbs simply feel like logical focal points and protagonists for future adventures. Even if Dom and Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) continue to headline the main Fast and Furious films, a spin-off for these two alpha males still seems like a no-brainer.
Aside from their delightfully antagonistic (yet somehow brotherly) chemistry with one another, a pairing of Hobbs and Shaw could also work because they fundamentally bring two different stylistic approaches to the table when it comes to action. Elsewhere in The Fate of the Furious' commentary, F. Gary Gray highlighted the prison break sequence as a perfect example of that concept, saying:
What we were going for besides hell in a cage, we were going for two different fighting styles. This parkour approach that Jason Statham is displaying is showing how really dangerous yet, it's not choreographed, it's just something kind of dangerously elegant about what he's doing with his parkour approach to kicking the shit out of everyone. This guy is real precise, which is completely the opposite to what The Rock's doing. He has this kind of Godzilla thing where it's all brute force and he's just going to walk through the wall. He's not doing anything elegant, he's just going to remove anything or anyone in his way.
Think about it; you would probably already be tempted to see a big, loud, and bombastic Dwayne Johnson blockbuster, as well as a more precise Jason Statham martial arts movie within the same year anyway. With a Hobbs and Shaw team-up, you will get two for the price of one. Think of the savings!
Whether or not Shaw and Hobbs will team up for an ass-kicking adventure remains to be seen, but their on-screen chemistry in The Fate of the Furious definitively proves that it could work. F. Gary Gray's Fast and Furious film is currently available on DVD, Blu-ray, and Digital HD, so make sure to pick up your copy. Beyond that, check out our movie premiere guide for more information related to 2017's major theatrical releases.
