Neal Moritz’s Hobbs & Shaw lawsuit ends amicably

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

While it seemed like Neal Moritz's lawsuit with Universal over HOBBS & SHAW compensation was steadily running out of gas, a last-minute pit stop has refilled the tank and reunited the producer with THE FAST SAGA family for future road trips.

According to a provision in his HOBBS & SHAW contract, Moritz was granted an extra lap in his legal street race via mediation with a third-party arbitrator. In what could have easily resulted in a flat tire for the crew instead turned into a mere oil change on the way to a reunion at the finish line.

THE FAST SAGA has long been the NASCAR of film franchises with a non-stop, no brakes race that throws everything at the checkered flag and never slows down, not even for legal proceedings. It once again seems that even the strength of the Torretto extended family isn't limited to the big screen with Moritz and its behind-the-scenes crew hugging this one out in the hopes of a long future together. In fact, now that the matter has been resolved, Moritz has chalked the whole business up to "a little family disagreement."

Both parties jointly released a statement confirming that all is good under the hood.

“Neal H. Moritz has been an integral part of the Fast & Furious family since the inception of the franchise nearly two decades ago," a Universal Pictures spokesperson said via email to The Hollywood Reporter. "The studio and Neal have amicably resolved our dispute and settled all claims relating to the Fast & Furious spin-off Hobbs & Shaw. We’re glad to put this issue behind us and focus on the future of this franchise.”

And Moritz said, “Fast & Furious has always been about family and unfortunately we had a little family disagreement. I am happy to rejoin my Universal and Fast family to continue to work on the Fast saga for many films to come. I appreciate Universal’s leadership team working with me and my attorney Howard Abramson to resolve this fairly.”

Yesterday, Fast & Furious veteran Michelle Rodriguez seemingly confirmed that the franchise will be headed to outer space. I'm not joking. This happened on The Jess Cagle Show, in which Rodriguez said, "Oh, no way! How did you guys find that out? See what happens? People start talking behind the scenes, man. When a movie doesn’t come out and forget about it, things get out. Nobody was supposed to know that." The rumor that the Fast franchise would boldly go where it's never gone before surfaced last year, when Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, who plays Tej Parker, spoke on The Jess Cagle Show and insinuated that the upcoming sequel could finally take the franchise to the stars above.

What do you all think? Is the known galaxy the Fast franchise's next logical leap into absurdity? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.