Key Takeaways
- Vin Diesel says Michael Lesslie’s script for the final film, titled “Fast Forever,” is the best he’s read in decades and left him “still crying,” hinting at a full-circle, emotional ending for the franchise.
- Promoting the 25th-anniversary theatrical re-release of the original 2001 The Fast and the Furious, Diesel urged fans to rewatch it in theaters, suggesting the finale will heavily connect back to where Dom, Brian, and the idea of “family” began.
- Fast Forever, written by Lesslie and directed by returning Fast X filmmaker Louis Leterrier, is expected to close out a 10-film, $7 billion saga while resolving Fast X’s cliffhangers and setting up returns for characters like Luke Hobbs and Gisele.
Nearly three years after Fast X ended with one of the franchise's biggest cliffhangers, Vin Diesel says the final chapter of The Fast & The Furious saga is already hitting him hard. The actor revealed that he has finished reading the script for Fast Forever and didn't hold back his reaction, calling it the strongest screenplay he's seen in decades—and hinting that longtime fans should prepare for an emotional full-circle ending.
Diesel shared the update on Instagram while promoting Universal's theatrical re-release of 2001's The Fast and the Furious, which returns to theaters on August 21 for its 25th anniversary.
Alongside the trailer, Diesel praised screenwriter Michael Lesslie's work, writing, "I just read the 'Fast Forever' script by [Michael Lesslie]. It is the best script I have read in decades. I am still crying…"
He also teased that audiences should revisit the original movie before the finale arrives, adding, "You will thank God you got to see the First one in the theaters this summer."
What started in 2001 as a grounded crime thriller about undercover cop Brian O'Conner infiltrating Dominic Toretto's Los Angeles street-racing crew has transformed into one of Hollywood's biggest action properties. Over the course of 10 mainline films, the series expanded from illegal drag races and DVD hijackings to globe-trotting heists, high-tech espionage missions, and gravity-defying stunts—all while making Dom's unwavering belief in "family" its defining theme.
Collectively, the franchise has generated more than $7 billion worldwide, making it one of the highest-grossing film series ever produced.
Diesel's comments also suggest Fast Forever won't simply wrap up Fast X's unresolved story. His reference to the original film points toward a narrative that deliberately circles back to where it all began.
The 2001 movie introduced Diesel alongside the late Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Rick Yune, and Chad Lindberg, launching a cultural phenomenon that has spanned feature films, short films, an animated series, and the Hobbs & Shaw spin-off.
The screenplay comes from Michael Lesslie, who was announced as the film's writer earlier this year after reworking an earlier draft by Aaron Rabin and Zach Dean. Lesslie is known for credits including The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Macbeth, Assassin's Creed, and the upcoming Sunrise on the Reaping.
Fast Forever will reunite him with director Louis Leterrier, who stepped in to helm Fast X and returns to direct what is expected to be the franchise's final main installment.
The stakes couldn't be much higher. Fast X, released in 2023, earned more than $700 million globally and concluded with several major storylines unresolved while teasing the returns of Dwayne Johnson's Luke Hobbs and Gal Gadot's Gisele through its post-credit scenes.
