Jason Statham has been involved in some truly intense action movies, but there’s only one he described as gritty, real, and “f–cking hardcore.” That’s quite a statement coming from the star of Crank, The Transporter, and The Beekeeper, all of which offered action movie fans plenty of intensity and high-stakes stuntwork.

However, it was the Fast & Furious spin-off movie Hobbs & Shaw that Statham singled out for its intensity, as this highly anticipated cinematic event paired the former mercenary Deckard Shaw with the committed operative Luke Hobbs, played by Dwayne Johnson. As two fan-favorite characters, Hobbs & Shaw allowed these supporting antagonists to step into the spotlight for the first time.

Jason Statham’s Hobbs & Shaw Is A Streaming Hit (& Rightfully So)

Viewers Have Been Discovering Hobbs & Shaw On Peacock

Hobbs & Shaw landed on Peacock this July and has unsurprisingly become a global streaming success (via Collider), as new and old viewers alike tuned into the buddy action comedy. With great chemistry between Statham and Johnson, seeing how these mismatched opposites worked together to take down a ᴅᴇᴀᴅly cybernetically enhanced terrorist made for exciting viewing.

Having already built up an audience through the Fast & Furious mainline series, Hobbs & Shaw showcased that there was room for different kinds of stories set in this cinematic world. Featuring the same over-the-top action sequences viewers have come to expect from the series, Hobbs and Shaw got the most out of the characters’ hilarious animosity for one another.

With an admirable 67% score from critics and an impressive 88% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, Hobbs and Shaw was a hit and grossed an impressive $760 million against its $200 million budget. As Peacock viewers now relive the excitement of Hobbs and Shaw, it’s clear that this spin-off can stand on its own two feet outside of the Fast franchise.

Jason Statham Called Hobbs & Shaw “F—king Hardcore” – Was He Right?

Statham And Johnson Deliver Genuine Thrills

When Statham spoke about Hobbs & Shaw to Collider in the lead-up to its release back in 2018, he called the film “gritty, and real, and f–king hardcore.” While it is an apt description for many of Statham’s film projects, with Hobbs & Shaw, it felt appropriate even if it’s clear he may have been using some hyperbole in order to build anticipation for his own film.

Yet, Hobbs & Shaw delivers on the intense thrills and even goes beyond what’s seen in many Fast movies, offering more than just intense car chases. Considering the martial backgrounds of both Statham and Johnson, Hobbs & Shaw was able to lean into what the duo does best by delivering some intense fight choreography that could only be described as “hardcore.”

With Deckard Shaw thrown into the limelight, Statham was able to let loose with a gritty performance that embodied the character’s criminal background. Idris Elba added to this intensity as a genetically enhanced mercenary who acts as a formidable foe to the duo. While other Jason Statham roles, like Crank, may be more gritty, Hobbs & Shaw lives up to this description.

Sources: Collider, Collider