Helmer Louis Leterrier has addressed the possibility of reviving Jason Statham’s Transporter franchise in a recent interview with ComicBook.
Leterrier directed the tenth instalment of the ‘Fast & Furious’ franchise, Fast X, which opened to mixed reviews and failed to turn into a profit despite grossing over $700 million at the global box office. Apart from facing the side effects of franchise fatigue, the Vin Diesel starrer also faced stiff competition from ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ and ‘Transformers: Rise of the Beasts’ during its theatrical run, ultimately forcing Universal to release the film via VOD much earlier than intended.
After working with Statham on Fast X, Leterrier has expressed his desire to re-team with the English actor for future Transporter movies. This is what he said in his interview:
“I mean, that would be a dream. No, I mean we’ve shot commercials together, we’ve seen each other socially, but we hadn’t worked together for a long, long time and just seeing him being able to work with him, call action on the shot he was in. Directing him was just like it was so great and it was the beginning of his career, the very beginning of my career with two different people. But at the same time, you know, our heart is the same and our love for each other is the same. It was a true pleasure. So, I mean, why not like that? You know, Frank Martin is a great character. The Transporter is a great character. And Jason [Statham] is an amazing actor. We need more Transporter, right?”
Cory Yuen directed the first Transporter film (2002). It was a stylish and cool action flick and gave Jason Statham his first big break as an action star. Leterrier helmed the second entry (2005), which was certainly better than the first in terms of storyline and action sequences. However, the third instalment (2008), which Leterrier did not helm, served as a highly disappointing conclusion to the leading man’s tenure as Frank Martin.
After the Transporter series, Jason Statham has appeared in numerous popular big-budget movies, such as The Expendables series, Fast & Furious series, both Meg entries, and more.
Jason Statham’s Meg 2 is currently running in theatres and has grossed over $140 million globally. In addition, he has starred alongside Sylvester Stallone in Expendables 4, scheduled to hit the theatres on September 22. If he agrees to work with Louis Leterrier again for future Transporter movies, it’s certainly possible that the next part could make action fans fall in love again with the franchise. Stay tuned for more updates.