AceShowbiz -

Mostly directing horror films like "Saw", "Insidious", and "Death Sentence", James Wan might soon spread his wings into another film genre. The Australian filmmaker is reportedly in final negotiations with Universal Pictures to be the helmer of "Fast and Furious 7", which is expected to start its production this summer and get a 2014 release.

Previously directing the four installments of the car racing-themed film series, Justin Lin has openly given his support to Wan. "It's time for me to move on to other things and I'm thrilled that Universal and Neal have selected James Wan to lead the franchise into its new chapter," he says.

Even though the deal has not been sealed yet, Wan, whose upcoming movies are "The Conjuring" and "Insidious Chapter 2", has hinted that he may be the helmer. "Vroom Vrooom...," so the Malaysian-born director wrote on Twitter April 10.

To fill the vacant director's seat left by Lin, Universal reportedly approached several other names that were considered the best candidates. Among them are Baltazar Kormakur ("2 Guns"), Jeff Wadlow ("Kick-Ass 2") who was rumored to be the frontrunner for the job, Brad Furman ("The Lincoln Lawyer"), and Harald Zwart ("The Karate Kid").

Vin Diesel and Paul Walker are confirmed to return to the sequel to "Fast and Furious 6", which will be released across the nation on May 24. Neal Moritz will be serving as the producer while Chris Morgan will help write the screenplay.