English actor Jason Statham is famous for action-thriller films where he portrays tough, irredeemable, and machiavellian characters. The 54-year-old actor also knows how to perform Chinese martial arts, karate, and kickboxing. We’ll have to give him credit for Guy Ritchie’s Lock, Stock, Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and Snatch (2000). But, we can’t deny that the “The Transporter” franchise played a key role in Statham’s career.
So why did the man behind the former special-operations mercenary Frank Martin walk away from making “The Transporter 5”? He took the decision around the same time he was committing to “The Expendables 3” (2014), “Furious 7” (2015), and “Mechanic Resurrection” (2016)?
The Reason Behind Jason Statham Leaving The Transporter Franchise
According to The Hollywood Reporter, back in 2013, EuropaCorp and Fundamental Films were to co-finance the movie. It would also produce, and distribute three installments in “The Transporter” franchise post T3. The budget of the project ranged from $30-40 million. Another factor was that at least one movie was taking place in China. But apart from a single film fronted by an entirely different actor released in 2015, the Frank Martin saga seemed dead in the water.
According to a source, “As low brow as his filmography might be – let’s not pretend Crank: High Voltage (2009), Gnomeo & Juliet (2011), or The Meg (2018) were robbed of any cinematic accolades – it’s more than understandable why Jason Statham would be unwilling to stake his reputation, plus the legacy of Frank Martin, on three potentially sub-par movies starting with The Transporter 5. And for pennies on the dollar, no less.”
Statham shared, “Imagine having to sit there after years of soullessly shooting ‘The Transporter’ film, dreading release date after release date, all the media promotion involved to sell how the filmmaking philosophy has changed, about how Frank Martin has kinda evolved. It’s practically the seventh circle of Hell.”
“I guess when all is said and done, there are only so many in-movie missions you can watch. A former special-operations mercenary turned kickboxing courier embark upon before the services you’ll be requesting involves a bullet to your own head. Just look at what they did to Fast & Furious,” he added.
Jason Says He Would’ve Loved Doing The Movie, But Couldn’t See Value In It
“You know what? It was obviously a great experience doing those films, and I would have loved to keep doing it,” Jason Statham explained during an interview with Vulture.
“But they wanted me to sign on and do three more movies without even seeing a script, and they offered me less money to do three than I’d get paid for one! So it was a business decision.”
He concluded, “I would have loved to have done it, but you can’t really sign on without doing a script. And to sign on for three of them? And to get paid a pittance? I just couldn’t see the value in that.”
Also read: What is Memorial Day? Revisiting Its History And Significance
