Since Vin Diesel has played Dominic Toretto for over two decades now, it’s easy to forget that there will come a post–Fast And Furious time for the actor. But Diesel has been teasing closing the book on the franchise in order to give the movie series its “own ending,” and reports have pointed to next year’s installment giving the franchise’s central storyline a finale. With that in mind, Vin Diesel is getting very excited about a new project that is completely unrelated to his Fast family.
Diesel took to his Instagram on Friday to share a selfie along with a message about an exciting movie he’s currently working on. Check out the post:
Vin Diesel shared that he is set to play Kojak after receiving a script that he is calling the “best” of 2024. The actor has been attached to a Kojak movie for over a decade, but it looks like the producers and Diesel are finally happy with the direction it’s going. In Diesel’s words:
I just received a script! No, not just any script… Amy Pascal, who I have to mention by name, has just sent me the BEST script in Hollywood. This is the type of script that all of your heroes in the 70s and 80s would have fought for. Haha. Several writers have tried to attack the story of Kojak… always falling a tad bit short. But for some reason, in this crazy world… the script came in as a masterpiece. Wow. I am humbled, speechless. My favorite writer was always Budd Schulberg… but what I just read is… wow! I will say it again! Cause you all know I am a perfectionist. Haha, to a fault. The best script in 2024…Is Kojak!
Kojak is one of the best classic mystery shows that has ever been on television. The series that ran from 1973 to 1978 follows the life of an NYPD detective named Theo Kojak (played by Telly Savalas). Per Diesel’s comments, Sony Pictures executive Amy Pascal is involved in the movie. Pascal has famously been behind the Tom Holland and recent animated Spider-Man movies, along with 2019’s Little Women and the upcoming Zendaya-led movie Challengers, among others.
While announcing what’s happening with his Kojak movie, Vin Diesel reflected on his 2006 movie Find Me Guilty, where he portrayed New Jersey mobster Jackie DiNorscio for Sidney Lumet’s based-on-a-true-story film. He called the mobster someone with “film ideals and infatigable convictions,” not unlike Detective Kojak.
Fans may be feeling emotional about the end of Dominic Toretto on the big screen, whatever shape that may take, but it will free the actor up to take on different roles like this one. Hey, maybe the Kojak movie will be one of Vin Diesel’s best movies? The actor sounds excited enough about it for that to be a possibility!
While we wait to hear more details about the Kojak movie, you can look forward to the conclusion of the Fast saga by marking your calendars for the eleventh installment, which is expected to hit theaters on April 4, 2025.