Looking at the highest-grossing films in Universal Pictures’ history, it quickly becomes apparent that the “Fast & Furious” franchise is one of their highest-grossing properties. Keeping it running as long and smooth as possible is a top priority for anyone in charge of this iconic outfit. So it should come as no surprise that Universal Pictures head Donna Langley spoke about the extended future of the “Fast & Furious” franchise in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in November 2014. Here, Langley said there would, at a minimum, have a trio of sequels after the upcoming “Furious 7.” This technically qualifies as the very first mention of “Fast X”, nearly a decade before its theatrical release.
It didn’t take long for more news about the 10th “Fast & Furious” adventure to emerge. In February 2016, the first tentative release date for “Fast X” was unveiled, with the project aiming to open on April 2, 2021 at that time. This would have placed the 10th “Fast & Furious” film firmly in the April slot in which so many previous “Fast & Furious” films had excelled financially. The announcement of that release date also came with the note that the then-untitled “Fast & Furious 10” was set to be the franchise’s final installment.