One of the Biggest Action Franchises Ever Is Dominating HBO Max

1 week ago 7

Published Apr 4, 2026, 11:01 AM EDT

Rohan Naahar is a Weekend News Writer for Collider. From Francois Ozon to David Fincher, he'll watch anything once.

He has covered everything from Marvel to the Oscars, and Marvel at the Oscars. He also writes obsessively about the box office, charting the many hits and misses that are released weekly, and how their commercial performance shapes public perception. In his time at Collider, he has also helped drive diversity by writing stories about the multiple Indian film industries, with a goal of introducing audiences to a whole new world of cinema.

Despite facing a massive speed bump, one of the longest-running and most successful action franchises of the past two decades is back on track. The series, which began more than two decades ago, will return with an eleventh and final installment in 2028, five years after the previous entry underperformed at the box office and received mixed reviews. But it seems as if the franchise's heyday is in the rearview mirror — the series peaked around a decade ago with an installment that grossed $1.5 billion worldwide despite suffering major setbacks during production. The most recent movie had a tumultuous production as well, which led to its budget ballooning to a reported $378 million. The franchise is no stranger to on-set troubles. One of the most controversial chapters in its history unfolded on the set of the eighth installment. The incident impacted the direction the franchise took in subsequent years, and its effect continues to be felt to this day.

The movie in question recently witnessed a spike in interest on streaming. It was released in 2017, just two years after the franchise had set a new benchmark both critically and commercially. Directed by F. Gary Gray, the film cost a reported $270 million to produce, and while it wasn't as successful as its immediate predecessor, it was still able to gross a huge $1.2 billion worldwide. We're talking, of course, about The Fate of the Furious, ground zero for the infamous feud between stars Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson. The Rock posted about the dust-up on Instagram, citing professionalism issues but stopping short of identifying the co-star he was referring to. He subsequently declined to return for the mainline franchise installments, and starred in the spin-off film Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, also featuring Jason Statham.

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Forget Going to Outer Space, 'The Fate of the Furious' Broke New Ground by Including an Action Scene Involving a Baby

Johnson is expected to return for the final film in 2028, with Diesel having made several public overtures to him in the past few years. The Fate of the Furious, however, remains a pivotal moment in the franchise's history. It holds a 67% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the critics' consensus reads, "The Fate of the Furious opens a new chapter in the franchise, fueled by the same infectious cast chemistry and over-the-top action fans have come to expect." The movie brought back Statham and delved deeper into the Mr. Nobody angle from the previous installment. It also introduced Charlize Theron's Cipher as a menacing new villain, and became the franchise's first installment to feature an action scene revolving around a baby. According to FlixPatrol, The Fate of the Furious was among the most-watched movies on the global HBO Max chart this past week. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.