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"Denzel Washington turned down a role in Fast &amp;amp; Furious 7, it has been revealed.  Deadline reports that director James Wan is seeking &amp;quot;a big star&amp;quot; to play a small role in the next film and a major role in the eighth.    No further details have emerged about the role that Washington was in line for, or his reasons for turning it down.  Jason Statham will play the villain in the upcoming seventh film, following on from his cameo at the end of Fast &amp;amp; Furious 6. Saw director Wan is taking over directing duty from Justin Lin, with the seventh film kick-starting a new trilogy.  &amp;gt; Jason Statham on Fast &amp;amp; Furious 7: &amp;#039;I want a showdown with The Rock&amp;#039; &amp;gt; Jordana Brewster: &amp;#039;Jason Statham is a great addition to Fast &amp;amp; Furious&amp;#039; Watch Vin Diesel discussing Fast &amp;amp; Furious 7 below:  "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/movies/fast-and-furious/news/a503314/denzel-washington-turned-down-a-role-in-fast-furious-7/>