Vin Diesel's XXX 3 Recruits Nina Dobrev and Ruby Rose

Franchise devotee Vin Diesel is gearing up for the third installment of the xXx saga, which is rumored to be titled xXx: The Return of Xander Cage. D.J. Caruso (Eagle Eye, Disturbia) is directing what will be Diesel's return to the series after sitting out the second entry, and he'll be back as the titular extreme sports-loving reluctant secret agent.

THR reports that Diesel is attempting to shape this franchise into something similar to the Fast & Furious movies, which have him at the center of an ensemble cast. To that end, the production is in various stages of negotiations with Nina Dobrev (Vampire Diaries), Ruby Rose (Orange is the New Black), and Bollywood star Deepika Padukone to join him in the action thriller. Dobrev will play "a witty and sarcastic techie," Rose will play a sniper, and Padukone sounds like she'll have the meatiest role of the three, playing "a huntress who happens to be Cage's former lover."

Plot details are being kept under lock and key, but Samuel L. Jackson is attached to reprise his role as the head of the National Security Agency once again. Production is set to begin later this month. Dobrev (who was fun in The Final Girls) and Rose are nice additions to the team (I can't speak about Padukone because I haven't seen her in anything), and I'm curious if anyone is excited about this movie. Let me know in the comments.