Fast and Furious 9: Vin Diesel urges film buffs to return to cinemas when Edinburgh-shot action movie opens this summer

Vin Diesel has urged film fans to return to cinemas when the latest instalment in the Fast & Furious saga opens this summer.

Partly shot on the streets of Edinburgh F9 is scheduled for release in UK cinemas on July 8.

In a new teaser trailer, the gravel-voiced actor welcomes film buffs back to the cinema.

“After staying apart for so long, it’s time to come back together," says Diesel in the trailer.

“To laugh, to cheer, we’re ready to make you believe again. Because nobody does a comeback like the movies.”

Led once again by Diesel's Dom Toretto, the ninth instalment in the Fast & Furious saga welcomes back franchise favourites including Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges and Charlize Theron.

And this time, some of the action scenes in the big budget Hollywood blockbuster were shot in Edinburgh.

Fast & Furious 9 filmed in the Capital over 19 days in September 2019 in 11 different city centre locations – including Waterloo Place, George Street, Cockburn Street, Victoria Street, Royal Mile, Melville Street and the Museum of Scotland.

Back then, Edinburgh residents were thrilled to catch glimpses of Diesel and co up close, as the city's streets were taken over by a filming crew and stuntmen.

Following the shoot, stars of the Fast and Furious franchise thanked the people of Edinburgh as they departed the Capital.

Diesel and Gibson even took the time to thank locals, film bosses and the city council after filming high-octane sequences in the city.

In an Instagram post, leading man Diesel waved to a cheering crowd of avid Capital film fans following a take on the Royal Mile before paying tribute to the city.

Vin Diesel filming the Fast and Furious sequel F9 in Edinburgh. Picture: Lisa Ferguson/JPIMedia.

He said: “We've been here in Edinburgh, one of many locations, the crowd has been great, look at this crowd, we have been blessed.”

And Diesel's co-star, Gibson, also left his own message for city residents after wrapping his scenes in the Capital, thanking locals for warmly welcoming the cast.

In an Instagram video, he said: “To the great people of Scotland, the Fast cast that came all the way from London, holding it down out here, keeping this energy and momentum going for what we are doing and building.

“To all of the extras, all of the local people that live here, I just wanted to send you all some love and say thank you for welcoming us.”

Diesel, whose real name is Mark Sinclair and whose mother has Scottish roots, also took a break from filming F9 in the Capital to have a private evening tour of Rosslyn chapel which has been in the ownership of the St Clair family since its foundation in 1446.

During his time at the 15th century landmark in the village of Roslin in Midlothian, the actor made a video outside the chapel, for his following on Instagram of over 57 million people worldwide.

In it, he described the chapel as “sacred” and said he had chosen it for a meeting with Hollywood moguls to discuss the next Fast & Furious film.

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