The newest Fast and Furious movie is here and, if past is prologue, then we're likely in for a rash of incidents involving people driving a little too fast. We've seen some history of people getting a little to into the Fast and Furious movies and enjoying the high speed automotive action so much they wanted to get into it themselves. The state of Virginia apparently had an idea to try and prevent people from getting too crazy on the roads, and Ludacris approves.
F9 co-star Ludacris shared an image of an electronic road sign, found someplace in Virginia, which encourages drives to not drive "fast and furious." It also name drops Luda himself. The actor loves being part of this public service campaign and suggests that the rest of the country should consider something similar.
It may sound a little crazy, but there actually is some evidence that when Fast and Furious movies come out, people tend to drive a little faster. The state of Virginia is trying to get out ahead of the problem, however slight it might be, and remind people to drive safely. Perhaps by referencing the movie series that may have influenced them they can better get people's attention.
Ludacris is clearly getting a kick out of getting this unexpected shoutout. The official Fast Saga Instagram account responded to the post, as did co-star Jordana Brewster. Everybody seems a little taken aback by the Fast and Furious reference in a road warning. At the same time, the image has now gone viral, which means that not only are people seeing the funny joke, but they're also seeing the message about driving safely. Ao in the end, everybody wins.
It does show just how ubiquitous the Fast and Furious franchise has become. After 10 movies, it's one of the biggest film franchises in the world and it's something that everybody understands, including people who haven't actually seen the movies. I guess you know you've made it when a Department of Transportation makes reference to you.
To whatever degree people are influenced by Fast and Furious movies to try and drive like the people on the screen, there's a lot of people for signs like this to potentially reach. F9 saw an opening weekend box office of $70 million, which is the most we've seen from a film since the end of 2019. Those numbers are solid for the Fast and Furious franchise, but they're a very good signal for the industry as a whole. People are willing to go back to movie theaters in significant numbers.
It will be interesting to see if Virginia sees a noticeable decrease in traffic incidents as a result of this sign. If so, then we may see something like it again in a couple years. There are at least two more Fast and Furious movies on the way.
