Fast & Furious 10 hits theaters on May 17th. And as befits the tenth part of a blockbuster series, the film is completely overloaded with characters. The first trailer needed an insane three minutes and 45 seconds to really pay enough attention to all the stars. Vin Diesel, Jason Momoa, Brie Larson, John Cena: Does the movie need another star? Does Fast and Furious need Dwayne Johnson?
On Friday, industry outlet The Wrap reported The Rock will appear in an end credits scene on Fast X after a six-year absence. My first thought was: why!? And the second: actually there are only winners here.
The Rock comeback in Fast & Furious 10 is only possible with a grim peace
Why is the Dwayne Johnson comeback such a big deal anyway? Let’s rewind a few years. In 2016, during the shooting of Fast & Furious 8, it became public that the Fast and Furious godfather Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson like each other as much as the FDP and the speed limit. So not at all. Johnson indirectly named Vin Diesel “Candy Ass” and complained about his work ethic.
The Quarrel between the alpha males simmered for a few more years until Johnson categorically ruled out ever returning to the series in late 2021.
For Johnson to be back after all is the perfect punch line in a story only this multi-billion dollar muscle-and-oil franchise can write. This series, in which clauses are actually negotiated as to how often and whether one of the testosterone blocks can lose a screen fistfight. In which camera perspectives are changed to conceal differences in body size. In short, in which very real actor egos preform fictional character fates.
Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson certainly aren’t reuniting for brotherly affection right now. The Fast films would probably never have grown to their current size without Johnson. He gave the series a new reach.
Likewise, Johnson continued to grow in the Fast and Furious biotope most prominent blockbuster star of the present.
Now, Diesel and Johnson are “reconciling” at a moment when things aren’t going well for either of them. Ever since Dwayne Johnson left the Fast franchise, the franchise has gone downhill – and so has Dwayne Johnson.
Two flops plunged Dwayne Johnson into the biggest crisis of his career
Dwayne Johnson said goodbye to Fast & Furious at a supposed high point in his career. He had two high-budget blockbusters in front of him that rely entirely on his star power. His adventure blockbuster Jungle Cruise started in the second pandemic summer, two weeks after Fast and Furious 9 – the first Fast part since 2009 in which he was not a part. But the film became his until then worst blockbuster flop: 200 million US dollars budget, only 220 he played again.
Fast & Furious 10 – Trailer (German) HD
A year later, the DC cracker Black Adam followed, which could have lost up to 250 million US dollars. After Black Adam Johnson, Johnson suddenly found himself in the biggest crisis of his career. The Rock experienced his meltdown, his ego seemed badly battered at times. The horses he bet on turned out to be slobs.
The fact that he is now crawling back to the almost family at the first possible opportunity fits into the picture. Johnson has reached the lowest point in his career. Ironically, Vin Diesel apparently throws him the lifeline. He has to deal with that first.
But Johnson should console himself with the thought that Vin Diesel felt compelled to take this step in the first place.
Returning to Fast and Furious helps Dwayne Johnson — and she helps Fast and Furious
The Fast series also stumbled without Johnson, although not as badly. Internal dynamics spell out The Rock’s absence. Without Johnson on the set, Vin Diesel shoots uncontrollably and probably alienated employees: director Justin Lin is supposed to say it “my sanity is worth more than this movie” left the set. Part 10 changed directors a few days after the start of shooting. Something like that shouldn’t actually happen in a large-scale production. Diesel was desperate for damage control.
Part 9 already fell short of expectations financially without The Rock (and in the pandemic). The film bored loyal audiences with a story vacuum. No wonder: Vin Diesel’s character Dom Toretto lost her most important opponent and Frenemy with Dwayne Johnson’s Hobbs. Whether you like the character and Dwayne Johnson or not, Hobbs is an important part of the Fast saga. The series experienced its best phase with him first as an opponent and later as an ally of the “Crew”.
The conclusion of the fast saga is anyway only conceivable with The Rock
Last Vin Diesel talked about after Fast X two more films wanting to shoot a kind of final trilogy. But if the irresponsibly expensive Fast X doesn’t make it to the box office, Vin Diesel can scrap that plan. Then even part 11 is in danger.
With Hobbs’ appearance in the Fast 10 credits, which was hurriedly shot and applauded to the film, pure speculation, the muscle men pull each other out of the mud. Almost touching.
Dwayne Johnson is now coming back home. Back to the family, in the strong arms of Daddy Diesel, who can push him to his best with loving severity in Fast and Furious 11 and 12. Dwayne Johnson now knows he needs Fast and Furious as much as Fast and Furious needs him.