Truth In Titling: Vin Diesel Joins Action/Comedy M.U.S.C.L.E.

While a never-ending feud with The Rock seems to be threatening the future of the Fast & Furious franchise, Vin Diesel isn't going to let that beef keep a good beefcake down. So, while Dwayne and Jason Statham are out making their David Leitch-helmed spin-off, and Kin's Daniel Casey is busy penning F&F 9, Diesel is out in these streets looking for another series to lend his bald, racially-transcendent self to. 

Well, it looks like that possible franchise is going to be STX's M.U.S.C.L.E., which is - you guessed it - an adaptation of the fleshy action figure IP. Details on what the movie's actually about are being kept under wraps, outside of it being described by studio execs as an "action/comedy". Diesel is good at both, plus he has a whole lot of muscles, so I guess STX is off to a good start in the planning stages. 

That said, Vin's got a few projects lined up before production can even begin on this bit of ridiculousness, as he'll start shooting Sony’s Bloodshot this summer, and then star in and produce xXx 4, which may only come out in China (kidding).

For those unaware of the M.U.S.C.L.E. property, Mental Floss actually has a handy history available for you to peruse:

"It probably won’t surprise you to learn that M.U.S.C.L.E. figures originated in Japan. The figures were the toy line for Kinnikuman (above), a manga introduced in 1979 by Yudetamago, the pen name of creative duo Takashi Shimada (writer) and Yoshinori Nakai (artist).

When Kinnikuman first debuted in the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump, a manga anthology magazine, it was billed as a parody of popular chojin (superhero) staples like Ultraman and Superman. Instead of being an impressive figure, though, the titular fin-headed hero was an inept, bumbling wannabe who was reluctantly called upon to fight the bad guys when all the other chojin were busy. As the series matured, the stories shifted focus to an intense intergalactic form of professional wrestling..."

Look, you had me sold on "intergalactic form of professional wrestling." No word on when STX is aiming to have M.U.S.C.L.E. in theaters, but we'll keep you updated as this silly thing continues to develop. 

(Note: header photo by TIMP37, used with permission via Flickr)