LOS ANGELES, April 8 ― The action-packed Fast & Furious movie franchise is moving forward with plans for Fast 8, having added Game of Thrones and The Thing man Kristofer Hivju in the first of several new roles.

Hivju is to play a tough henchman, according to The Wrap, after Charlize Theron was previously associated with an antagonistic role of her own.

Shot by Straight Outta Compton director F. Gary Gray, Fast 8 will take place in New York, and its cast of returning characters includes Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Eva Mendes, Jason Statham and Chris Bridges.

Previous franchise outing Furious 7 thundered to a US$1.5 billion (RM5.92 billion) box office following an April 2015 release, its take bettered only by Jurassic World and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The first film in the series was released in 2001.

Filming on Fast 8 began in March with a scheduled release date of April 14, 2017. ― AFP-Relaxnews