Francis Ngannou joins the cast of ‘Fast & Furious’ 9

Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

Francis Ngannou is crossing over from the Octagon to the silver screen.

The ferocious heavyweight knockout artist has joined the cast of the ninth “Fast & Furious” film due out on May 22, 2020. Sources close to the UFC heavyweight confirmed the news to MMA Fighting on Wednesday following an initial report by Deadline.

Ngannou has made plenty of waves during his UFC career including three straight knockout wins including a pair of former heavyweight champions in Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos.

Now the Cameroonian born fighter will try his hand at acting as he joins one of the most profitable film franchises in history. The “Fast & Furious” films have grossed over $5 billion at the worldwide box office.

Ngannou is also joining a series of films famous for casting mixed martial artists after former Strikeforce star Gina Carano appeared in the sixth installment of the series with Ronda Rousey then appearing in “Furious 7”.

The newest “Fast & Furious” film will see Ngannou join a cast that includes returning stars such as Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jordana Brewster as well as WWE superstar John Cena, who was a newcomer to the cast this time around.

There’s no word on the part Ngannou will play but filming is already underway with location shoots in London, Los Angeles and Thailand.

Ngannou is repped by CAA .