Los Angeles, June 26 (IANS): Actor Jason Statham, who first joined the "Fast and Furious 6" franchise in 2013, will return for its upcoming eighth instalment. He will reprise his role as the villainous Deckard Shaw.

“We're already talking about doing another one, part eight," accesshollywood.com.

“I'm a newcomer. I just got invited to the party in this last one, so it's nice to know I'm going to be doing another,” he added.

Statham only made a cameo in the sixth movie but he later had a bigger role in "Furious 7". It's still unclear what to expect from his character in the "Fast and Furious 8" as he said: "There is some great stuff that I already know about."

The eighth instalment will release in North America on April 14, 2017. It will be the first film in the franchise without Paul Walker. Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson will reprise their respective roles as Dominic Toretto and Luke Hobbs. Kurt Russell is also expected to return for the new entry.