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Helen Mirren joins the cast of 'Fast and the Furious' for its eighth film

Helen Mirren will work alongside Vin Diesel, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Charlize Theron for "Fast 8." (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

By M. Susie Schmank

Academy Award-winning actress Helen Mirren will be joining the cast of the action-packed film series the “Fast and the Furious” for its eighth movie, “Fast 8.”

In an interview with Elle, Mirren confirmed that she will be in “Fast 8,” which is set for release on April 14, 2017. The actress, 70, will be joining stars Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and recently announced newcomer Charlize Theron, the star of “Mad Max: Fury Road.”

Mirren is known for her serious acting roles, but she says she is ready to have a little fun. She most recently starred as a British military commander who orders a drone missile strike in the film “Eye in the Sky.”

“I like to be serious. Of course, having said that I’m about to do ‘Fast and Furious 8.’ But that’s for the fun of it,” Mirren told Elle.

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 Fittingly, Mirren is also fan of cars and is hoping to have the opportunity to drive in “Fast 8.”

“I’ve always rather loved driving. I said, ‘I’ll be in [“Fast 8”] but only if I’m allowed to drive if I do drive in it.’ But we’ll see. We’ll see how it transpires. Film is a wonderful thing and it can be so many different things. I don’t want to turn my back on any of the different ways movies can be,” she told Elle.

With two female newcomers — but certainly no strangers to starring in action films — fans of the “Fast and the Furious” are looking forward to the new dynamic, and there is speculation that Mirren and Theron could be the next potential villains.