Vin Diesel says a third 'xXx' is happening

Following over a year of talking about it, Vin Diesel took to Instagram over the weekend and announced that a sequel to his 2002 actioner "xXx" will begin shooting in December in the Philippines.

The film was pegged to Gen Xers as X-Games meets James Bond with Diesel, on the heels of the first "Fast and Furious" movie being a hit, playing a thrill-seeking extreme sports athlete who is recruited by the government to infiltrate a Russian terrorist group.

The movie had a modest theatrical run, winning its opening weekend with a $44.5 million take and ending up with a $277 million worldwide gross. 

But any potential for a franchise looked to be dead when Ice Cube replaced Diesel in the 2005 sequel, "xXx: State of the Union." The film only made $71 million worldwide. 

With Diesel behind the successful "Fast and Furious" franchise, which includes its latest film, "Furious 7," making over $1.5 billion worldwide, it seems the actor is entitled to take on a pet project.