Anyone remotely familiar with the Fast & Furious franchise knows that Vin Diesel is an integral component to explosive, car-centric saga, as he’s played Dominic Toretto in all but one of the main installments. But Diesel has been looking to broaden his legacy with the film series, and evidently that’s caused some behind-the-scenes drama.
On Sunday, Vin Diesel shared a fan-made poster for the upcoming F9 on Instagram, and he wrote that the reason he hadn’t been posting much lately he is because he was trying to “mitigate” a war between Universal Studios and the Producers Guild of America, which he derogatorily labeled as the “Prejudice Guild of America.” While that original post is still up, the caption has since been replaced.
As it turns out, these cryptic comments have to do with Vin Diesel’s attempts to score a producer credit from the P.G.A for his off-camera contributions to the Fast & Furious franchise. According to Variety, the actor has been attempting to receive this distinction for nearly every movie in the film series, but he’s been repeatedly been denied by the organization and subsequently sought appeals. He’s looped in some notable figures to appeal on his behalf, including NBCUniversal Vice Chairman Tom Meyer.
Variety also mentioned that while Vin Diesel made it seem like the conflict was between Universal and the P.G.A., sources say that this “beef” is entirely the actor’s. When asked for comment about Diesel’s remarks, a P.G.A. spokesperson told the outlet:
It is the policy of the Producers Guild not to comment on individual arbitrations. The purpose of the Producers Mark is to protect the integrity of the ‘Produced By’ credit. A panel of experienced producers reviews anonymous firsthand accounts from filmmakers and key crew in order to determine who performed a major portion of the producing functions on a single film.
While Vin Diesel has been credited as a producer on every Fast & Furious movie since 2009’s Fast & Furious, he’s specifically trying to obtain the “p.g.a.” mark that’s listed by a producer’s name when the credits roll. An individual who scores that distinction becomes eligible to receive an Academy Academy for Best Picture if their movie wins that honor, as that award is given to producers. Furthermore, P.G.A.-recognized producers are often entitled to special bonuses based on the movie’s box office performance and gaining award nominations.
In Vin Diesel’s case, although there’s no arguing that he’s been one of the most important cogs in the Fast & Furious machine, evidently there’s debate about whether he’s truly involved in the “daily slog” of getting movies made like your average producers are. Speaking of which, those who are currently P.G.A-recognized producers on the Fast & Furious movies include Universal executive Jeff Kirschenbaum, Samantha Vincent from Diesel’s One Race Films and director Justin Lin.
One thing is clear: Vin Diesel won’t stop fighting for P.G.A. recognition anytime soon for F9. Although that movie, which will see Dom Toretto clashing with his estranged brother, was originally set to come out next month, it was pushed back to next spring back in March. This means that Diesel’s appeal to the P.G.A. remains open, and an anonymous source said that the actor is “willing to get dirty” to accomplish his goal.
F9 is now racing into theaters on April 2, 2021, so keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more updates. You can also learn what other silver screen offerings have had their releases postponed with our delayed movies guide.
