This past week, it was finally confirmed that F. Gary Gray will be directing the hotly anticipated sequel Fast & Furious 8. Now, Vin Diesel has moved onto his next project, XXX: The Return of Xander Cage. The actor announced today that D.J. Caruso will be taking the helm.

Vin Diesel has been teasing his return as Xander Cage since as far back as 2008. It will only be the second time he's played the character of Xander Cage in a feature film, with xXx debuting in 2002. The first sequel, XXX: State of the Union, arrived in 2005 with Ice Cube in the lead. And a short film that came with the DVD alluded to Cage being dead.That's certainly not the case, though.

When last he spoke of XXX: The Return of Xander Cage, Vin Diesel said the movie was shooting this December in the Phillippines. That means it will shoot before Fast & Furious 8. At this time, Sony has not officially announced the sequel or a release date. The director news comes from io9, who sat down with Vin Diesel this morning. The news has not been officially acknowledged by the studio. Fast & Furious 8 is being fast-tracked by Universal, which means that XXX: The Return of Xander Cage may get put on hold. We don't know yet. This is what Vin Diesel had to say.

"I'm excited as hell about xXx. D.J. Caruso is directing it, which is exciting. The big question now is which will race to production first now that F. Gary Gray is on [Furious 8]?"

Fast & Furious 8 appears to be the priority picture, not just for Vin Diesel, but everyone involved. As it is a guaranteed money maker, and will surely be another blockbuster hit. Still, there is a chance that XXX: The Return of Xander Cage will shoot before Fast & Furious 8. It sounds like the actor himself doesn't even know. About that, he explains.

"xXx is one of those films you do when you need to have a little fun. When the weight and pressures of all the other things have gone so far that you need to have a character that you can just have fun and more comment on life and comment on the outcome than being in it like Dom Torretto. Dom is very much the center of the storm, Xander is more the guide to something else and you're just with him."

At this time, no plot details have been revealed for XXX: The Return of Xander Cage. But the actor's comments hint that it could be even more over the top and action packed than any of the previous Fast & Furious movies. If that's even possible. Do you think D.J. Caruso is a good choice? He is best known for his thrillers Eagle Eye and Disturbia, both starring Shia LaBeouf. He is next directing G.I. Joe 3.