Fast and Furious 9 feud: The Rock responds

'If you don’t like it, we’re happy to beat that ass like a Cherokee drum'

When reports initially sprung concerning Fast and Furious 9 being delayed, there wasn’t much outrage, most people presuming the series was just taking a slight hiatus.

However, only hours later, the real reason was revealed: Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Jason Statham’s characters are getting a spin-off titled Hobbs and Shaw.

When the news went public, Tyrese Gibson responded over multiple Instagram posts, calling Johnson a “clown” and saying the leading star is trying to make the franchise his own.

Vin Diesel — who has been at the centre of the series since the beginning — attempted to keep the peace, saying: “it would be unfair to say it is anyone’s fault.”

Finally, Johnson has spoken out, writing on social media: “Daddy’s gotta go back to work ~ Hobbs. Pumped to expand and build out the Fast & Furious universe in a cool, exciting way with Seven Bucks Productions, writer/producer Chris Morgan, producer Hiram Garcia and lead producer and my bigger twin, Neil Moritz.

“Thank you Universal Studios for being tremendous partners who see the big picture and for coming to us years ago with this spinoff idea. Huge shout to my brother, Jason Statham for the trust and wanting to create and deliver something fresh and bad ass for the fans.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for this franchise that I’ve enjoyed droppin’ blood and sweat in over the years and my vision is to create greater opportunities for not only my fellow FF cast mates, but for other amazing actors as well who want to be a part of something new and cool.

“I want to use my spinoff platform to create new characters that fans will ultimately love to have fun with in multiple chapters and platforms. Film, TV, Digital, Virtual Reality etc.. the more opportunities we can create the better for the fans. Smart business. Let’s have some fun and to quote, Hobbs the boss, if you don’t like it, we’re happy to beat that ass like a Cherokee drum.”

Johnson finished with the hashtag #CandyAssesNeedNotApply, referring to an infamous Instagram post in which The Rock called a Fast 8 co-star a “candy ass”. The spin-off is due 26 July 2019, while the ninth main-series instalment is coming 10 April 2020.