Over the course of the past 21 years, the Fast and Furious franchise has transformed itself from a movie about street racing and boosting DVD players to one of today’s most profitable and off-the-wall cinematic experiences with a slew of sequels, spinoffs, television shows, video games, and more. During that time, the movies have also gone from moderate box office successes to absolute juggernauts, with Furious 7 and The Fate of the Furious both eclipsing the billion-dollar mark worldwide. Even F9: The Fast Saga, which was released in a pandemic, brought in a large chunk of change upon its June 2021 theatrical release.
All of this is to say that the franchise is here to stay, for a few more movies at least, with its 10th main installment, now officially known as Fast X, on the way. But before you grab your Corona, Von Dutch shirts, and start tinkering with your Dodge Charger, here are some things you should know about the ridiculously expensive blockbuster.
Fast X Will Be Released May 19, 2023
If we were living in an alternate reality, we would have already seen Fast X in theaters and on Blu-ray by now (it was originally slated to open on April 2, 2021), and would be talking about all the ways to watch it and other Fast and Furious movies streaming instead of discussing its upcoming debut. But this is some good news as Fast and Furious 10 is now set to be released on May 19, 2023, which seems like one hell of a way to kick off the summer Blockbuster season.
Jason Momoa’s Fast X Character Is A Villain
Over the years, the Toretto crew has come face-to-face with its fair share of furious villains ranging from Johnny Tran in The Fast and the Furious to the Cipher, who has become a perennial thorn in the side of the gang since being introduced in The Fate of the Furious. This time around, Dom and company will add another foe to the rogue’s gallery with the introduction of Jason Momoa’s Dante, a mysterious, flamboyant, and incredibly explosive criminal mastermind with ties to the group’s past.
In an interview with Total Film (via GamesRadar) in February 2023, director Louis Leterrier confirmed that Dante is the son of Hernan Reyes’ the ruthless crime lord at the heart of Fast Five who was killed by the Toretto gang when they were carrying out the film’s memorable and over-the-top heist sequence, thus serving as a connection between Fast X and 2011’s Fast Five. And years after his family was destroyed, Dante is coming back to do the same to Dom Toretto and the rest of his family.
The Fast X Trailer Teases The Toretto Crew’s Biggest Adventure Yet
After what seemed like months of eager anticipation, longtime fans of the Fast and Furious movies (and newcomers alike) finally got to see what lies ahead for the popular movie franchise with the debut of the explosive Fast X trailer in February 2023. The nearly four-minute trailer, which gave a lot of screen time to Jason Momoa’s Dante, teased what could be some of the biggest stunts so far, including a daring chase scene through Rome while explosions and giant globes wreak havoc on the Italian capital.
But the trailer wasn’t solely dedicated to Vin Diesel evading death at every quarter-mile, as it also laid out Dante’s motivations and his plan to get revenge against those who took so much from him more than a decade ago. A short follow-up trailer was released during Super Bowl LVII a couple of days later that offered up even more heart-pounding action sequences, including one that saw Diesel drive down an exploding dam.
Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Sung Kang And Other Members Of The Toretto Crew Are Returning
It is hard to say exactly how the ever-expanding Fast and Furious family will fit into the series’ 10th installment just yet but we do know that most of the major players introduced over the years will be back for exhilarating and one logic-defying car chase after another. In October 2020, Deadline reported that not only would Vin Diesel be returning as Dominic Toretto, but Michelle Rodriguez’s Letty Ortiz, Tyrese Gibson’s Roman Pearce, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges’ Tej Parker, Jordana Brewster’s Mia Toretto, Nathalie Emmanuel’s Ramsey, and Sung Kang’s Han Lue would all be back for another round of heart-stopping action as well.
During a June 2021 interview with EW, Vin Diesel revealed that franchise newcomer Cardi B will be returning as Leysa in Fast and Furious 10, this time with a more expanded role. In April 2022, The Wrap confirmed that Charlize Theron would be back again as Cipher, the cyber terrorist who is once again on the loose following the F9 ending.
The release of the Fast X trailer also showed the return of John Cena’s Dominic Toretto, Jason Statham’s Deckard Shaw, and Helen Mirren’s Magdalene Shaw, who have all become major parts of the franchise in recent years.
Jason Momoa, Brie Larson And Daniela Melchior Have All Joined The Fast X Cast
There is always room for more seats at Dominic Toretto’s table, and so it should come as no surprise that the Fast X cast just keeps getting bigger and bigger. In January 2022, it was revealed that Aquaman himself, Jason Momoa was joining the franchise in an unnamed antagonist (later confirmed to be a baddie named Dante), officially adding himself to the long list of furious villains that have tested the Toretto crew physically, mentally, and spiritually. In March 2022, Momoa described his character as "bit of a peacock" when speaking with Variety.
More casting news came in March 2022 when it was revealed that The Suicide Squad breakout start Daniela Melchior joined the franchise in an undisclosed role. But DC doesn’t get to have all the fun in Fast X, as Captain Marvel star Brie Larson, who previously pitched herself for the franchise, was revealed to be joining the Fast X cast in an Instagram post by Vin Diesel. It has since been revealed that Larson will play a government agent of some sort named Tess, according to Empire Online. We will also be introduced to a new member of the Toretto family, as Rita Moreno is slated to appear as Dom's grandma.
Fast X Will Be The First Chapter Of The Franchise’s Two-Part Finale
Upon its release, Fast X will be a part of something much larger than one supersized action-adventure film; in fact, it will be the first chapter in a two-part finale for a franchise that kicked off 21 years ago. When news first surfaced that Universal Pictures was planning to complete the Fast and Furious franchise (at least the mainline series) in the very near future, Deadline reported that instead of taking a traditional sequel model for the final two installments, longtime franchise director Justin Lin would tell one big story over two movies, starting with Fast X.
When speaking with Empire Online in February 2023, director Louis Leterrier teased that “a war” was brewing, which makes it seem like Fast X is just the beginning of the final chapter of the exciting action franchise.
Vin Diesel Has Said Fast And Furious 10 Is Split In Two Because There’s So Much Ground To Cover
The Fast and Furious franchise isn’t for everyone, but no one can take anything away from the way the series has continued to up the ante over the years, going from the streets of Los Angeles to outer space and everywhere in between. This need to constantly up the bar is one of the reasons Vin Diesel said Fast X needs to be told over the course of two movies, as he explained at an April 2021 F9 trailer press conference (via GamesRadar+):
As you know, we get to travel to all these wonderful places. And they’re part of the reason why Fast [and Furious] 10 has to be broken into two different movies — it’s because there’s so much ground to cover. And there’s so many places in so many locations in the world that we have to visit.
This “so much ground to cover” statement carries a great deal of weight when you think about all the characters and stories that will need to be wrapped up, in addition to the locations, before the “Fast Saga” comes to a close.
Louis Leterrier Has Replaced Justin Lin As The Fast X Director
On April 26, 2022, less than a week after production got started on Fast X, the film was dealt a major blow when its director Justin Lin stepped away from his duties behind the camera, which caused a pause in production. In a statement that was shared by Deadline, the director revealed that “with the support of Universal,” he made the “difficult decision” to exit the movie, though he would stay on as a producer. Lin has since gone on to find his first project following his Fast X departure.
The pause didn’t last all that long as Universal hired Louis Leterrier to replace Lin on Fast X in early May 2022, a little less than a week after the saga first began. According to Variety, Leterrier, whose previous efforts include The Incredible Hulk and Clash of the Titans, beat out several other candidates for the job.
When promoting the upcoming Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, Michelle Rodriguez sang Leterrier’s praises to The Hollywood Reporter, saying the French director brought an “energy of love” to the production and that the cast and crew were lucky to have him.
Fast X Will Not See The Return Of Dwayne Johnson’s Luke Hobbs
As great as it would be to see Dominic Toretto and Luke Hobbs cross paths once more in the Fast and Furious franchise, it doesn’t look like it’s in the cards as Dwayne Johnson has stated that he will not be returning for Fast X or its follow-up. In July 2021, Johnson told The Hollywood Reporter he wished the cast and crew the best of luck on the Fast and Furious movies that “will be without” him. And I guess this means the franchise will miss an opportunity to have Johnson and John Cena face-off unless he shows up in Hobbs and Shaw 2, if it happens.
What's Expected Beyond The Fast And Furious Movies
Even though the mainline Fast and Furious story will be coming to a close following the release of the 10th and 11th films in the franchise, this doesn’t mean the universe that has been created and built up over the course of the past 20 years is going anywhere anytime soon. In fact, there are multiple spinoff movies in the works at this time.
First, there’s the follow-up to the successful Hobbs and Shaw, which brought in $759 million worldwide in 2019, per Box Office Mojo. And while it remains unclear if we’ll get to see the odd couple of the action genre return for Hobbs and Shaw 2, a sequel has been in the works going back to March 2020. Then there is the long-in-the-works female-led Fast and Furious spinoff, which admittedly sounds like the right call considering all of the great female characters introduced over the years. And judging by comments made by Universal Pictures Chairwoman Donna Langley in October 2022, this project is very much something the studio would like to make a reality.
When addressing the future of the Fast and Furious franchise during an June 2021 interview with Vulture, Vin Diesel touched on a potential story that has reportedly been discussed as far back as 2009’s Fast and Furious, but stopped short of saying if that story would be a prequel of spinoff, only saying:
I will say that there is nothing that is off the table.
That same month, Diesel told Variety that he had writers working on a Fast and Furious spinoff centering on Charlize Theron’s character, Cipher, though there haven’t been any updates since. And then there were the comments Diesel made during a February 2023 Variety interview in which he said he wanted Robert Downey Jr. to be the “antithesis of Dom.”
Be on the lookout for more about Fast X in the coming weeks, as the promotional rollout will surely only get more intense between now and its May 19, 2023 release. In the meantime, take a look at the 2023 movie schedule to see what’s coming out on the road to Fast X or take a trip down memory lane by watching all the Fast and Furious movies streaming.
