Cannes Film Festival Books 'F9': What You Need To Know

Now, here is something that you don’t see every day: an installment of the slam-bang “Fast & Furious” franchise playing at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.

What Happened: Cannes is one of the world’s most important film festivals, with a history of attracting innovative and artistic works.

The Palme d'Or, the festival’s highest honor, has been won by such landmark productions as Orson Welles’ “Othello,” Federico Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita,” Francis Ford Coppola’s “Apocalypse Now” and Bong-Joon Ho’s “Parasite” — and, not to be snobbish, but that's not the kind of company one normally associates with the eighth sequel to a Vin Diesel car chase movie.

Variety is reporting that “F9” from Comcast Corporation CMCSA subsidiary Universal Pictures will be part of this year’s Cannes line-up. Festival director Thierry Fremaux told Variety that a “planetary blockbuster” would premiere at the event — a somewhat strange statement, considering “F9” has already opened in eight countries and grossed more than $250 million.

However, this would be the Western European premiere for “F9.” The film already opened in Russia and is not slated for a French release until July 14. The U.S. opening is scheduled for June 25.

Related Link: Warner Bros. Drops First 8 Minutes Of Movie Musical 'In The Heights' On YouTube

What Happens Next: None of the “F9” cast members is scheduled to appear at Cannes, which is scheduled to have its 73rd edition from July 6-17. Last year’s festival was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The opening film for this year’s festival is “Annette,” an English-language musical by the French director Leon Carax, starring Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard. The film is scheduled to have a limited U.S. theatrical release on August 6 before being made available for streaming audiences via Amazon.com, Inc.'s AMZN Prime Video service.

(Vin Diesel and John Cena exchange sparkling witticisms in a scene from “F9.” Photo courtesy Universal Pictures.)