The pandemic has made Zoom calls and virtual meetings quite commonplace, even when it comes to a press meet of one of the biggest movie franchises in the world. Earlier this week, we interacted with the stars of the upcoming F9 (Fast & Furious 9) — Vin Diesel, John Cena, Michelle Rodriguez, along with director Justin Lin — virtually. The stars spoke about the responsibility of reviving cinema in the theatres through the muchanticipated film, female representation in action films, and (yes, it’s true) the film, including an action sequence set in space.

Vin Diesel has been the face of the franchise for two decades. Talking about the film’s theatrical release during the pandemic, he said, “It feels incredible to be a part of something that will bring the world together. I think we, as a society, never anticipated that we could be losing by not being able to be entertained together as a community. It’s something special when there is a packed audience — with your family and friends — in a theatre. To be a part of the return of the theatrical experience is something that feels so right and something I am proud of.”

Although the last few months have seen big budget releases such as Tenet and Godzilla Vs Kong, they failed to provide the push many had been expecting for reviving the theatres in the post-COVID era. The movie industry is now banking on F9, as the franchise’s previous two instalments earned in excess of $1 billion at the box office. The film’s director Justin Lin said he was committed to having this movie release in the theatres, even if it meant holding the release for over a year after the first trailer dropped. He elaborated, “We were so committed to the cinema experience. We were all on the phone, constantly talking about finding the right time to be able to share this with the world, so that we can all go to the theatres and watch it. There are things you can watch on TV at home, but not this.”

The movie brings in wrestler-turned actor John Cena as the primary antagonist and Cena says he is living out his dream by being a part of it. He said, “I don’t lose sight of the opportunity I am getting to be a part of a legacy that is two decades long, where these people have devoted their lives and put their physical health on line to maintain the reputation that goes along with these movies. I knew full well going in that I would be sized up but I’m also a super geek fan of the franchise. I love what the movies are and what a life-changing opportunity it is to be invited into this.”

Action films have often been criticised for focussing too much on the male leads and reducing the female characters to props. However, the film’s female lead Michelle Rodriguez — a veteran of the franchise — feels that F9 is different because of how the writers and director Lin approached the female characters here. “I’ve never been prouder of female presence in the franchise. I give props to the studio for including a female writer on the film, and Justin has been really good with strong women. He developed Gal Gadot’s character in Fast Five. It’s beautiful to watch the girls in action in this one,” she said.

In the past, each subsequent film in the franchise has featured one outlandish action sequence and it has been a running Internet joke for a few years that one of these days, a film will have Vin Diesel piloting a rocket ship just to outdo the previous ones. Well, that is almost happening because F9 features an action sequence set in space.

Talking about the ‘insane’ sequence, Lin said, “I think it’s our responsibility that every time we get an opportunity to do one of these films, we have to push it. To me, it wasn’t like an agenda that we had to do. It was very organic. I felt like I went back to school actually because I had been talking to literal rocket scientists for the research. It actually felt amazing.”