Tyrese Gibson dishes on how 'Fast & Furious' franchise will wrap

F9 is fast approaching, and Tyrese Gibson is just as shocked as everybody else that the Fast & Furious franchise has endured for nine films and 20 years.

Gibson joined the franchise as Roman Pearce in 2003's 2 Fast 2 Furious, just his second-ever movie.

"We're still going; it's still butterflies—unbelievable," the 42-year-old told Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest during a virtual appearance on LIVE with Kelly and Ryan. "I mean, we all want to believe that we are definitely putting some thoughts and energy into it, but most of us are in disbelief that anticipation is there, the energy is there, and that we're in well over 200 countries."

After some reflection, Gibson revealed a little bit about how the franchise will wrap up.

"We're tapping out after 11, officially," he said. "And it'll be the first time we've ever shot two movies in a row. So, we're gonna do 10 and 11, and we're gonna go to a lot of different continents—hopefully South Africa will get some love this time."

Deadline exclusively broke the news last October that Fast & Furious will end with two more films—both directed by Justin Lin—after F9, which hits theaters June 25.

Vin Diesel, the franchise's central star, spoke on the anticipated ending last week. The 53-year-old told The Associated Press that Universal Studios could release the 10th and 11th films in 2023 and '24 respectively. 

"Every story deserves its own ending," he said. "I know people are going to feel like it doesn’t have to end, but I think all good things should. There are reasons for a finale. I think this franchise has deserved it."

Lin added: "We got together and Vin says 'I think we should think about closing up the saga now. Nine is kind of the first film of the final chapter. We're kind of reconfiguring everything, so that the next two movies should wrap up this amazing journey for these characters."

Watch Gibson's full LIVE appearance in the clips below.