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It was back in 2001 when Rob Cohen directed an adrenaline-pumped car-themed action adventure called "The Fast and the Furious," starring a then relatively unknown Vin Diesel. Co-star Paul Walker was still just a teen heartthrob. Years later, the Furious franchise has become a global phenomenon, with the eighth film, "The Fate of the Furious," opening next week. But what happened to Rob Cohen? He only directed the original Furious, even though Vin Diesel wanted him to come back and direct the new movie.

According to Variety, he's just been signed to direct an all-new car-racing action-thriller called "Speedhunters." With a budget set at $100 million, filming is set to begin this July in Shanghai and Berlin and will hit the big screen next summer. Little is known about the film's plot, only that it's "set in the near future and rooted in the world of Formula racing. A colorful team of racers and crew gets drawn into high intrigue around a revolutionary technology that threatens to change the world." What's also interesting about Speedhunters is that it's partially being funded by Jialfix and 1905 Pictures, and both are part of the state-owned China Movie Channel.

No announcement has been made yet regarding the cast, but there are four principal roles, and two of them have been written as Chinese (Chinese government money influence right there). The movie will mostly be in English but there's said to be some Chinese dialog. Assuming Speedhunters is a box office success, the studios and financiers are planning to turn it into a global franchise.