Isn’t it funny how the need for a smash-hit can change everything? Dwayne Johnson was the top star in Hollywood. An action-leading man. His passion project, the long-gestating Black Adam, was going to “change the hierarchy of power” in the DCEU. Only it wasn’t, and it didn’t. It stunk up the joint, and bombed. In Hollywood, you are only ever as good as your last movie. Before this, Johnson was part of one of the biggest franchises in the industry – Fast And Furious. However, he had walked away from the main franchise movies, apparently over beef with fellow star Vin Diesel.
Lots of big, bulging, sweaty macho tension positively cracked between the pair as they traded barbs on social media and Johnson declared he was out. Then Black Adam happened. Now it appears he is back in.
The wrestler-turned-actor made his series debut as US secret agent Luke Hobbs in 2011’s Fast Five, and was widely praised at the time for helping push the franchise onto the next level. He returned for three sequels and the 2019 spin-off Hobbs & Shaw. He dipped out of 2021’s F9 and this year’s Fast X apparently due to the bad blood between him and Diesel.
Now they have announced that the closure of the Fast & Furious franchise will be a triple-whammy three-part (X, XI, and XII) extravaganza, rather than two-parts as originally stated. Johnson, despite once saying there was “no chance” he would return to the series, is now back.
**Minor Spoilers For Fast X**
A post-credits scene in Fast X teased a comeback for the character of Luke Hobbs. Fast X director Louie Leterrier said:
“We reached out to Dwayne and his team, and said, ‘Just come and watch the movie. You have to love the movie first.’ So he came to see the movie and really loved it, and then we started talking.”
Now Johnson has confirmed his return on social media:
“So I am 100% confirming to you guys around the world that yes, it is true. Hobbs is back. Hobbs is back in the Fast & Furious franchise.
Last summer Vin and I put all the past behind us. We’ll lead with brotherhood and resolve – and always take care of the franchise, characters & FANS that we love.”.
Over the course of 10 movies, the Fast & Furious franchise has earned over $7 billion at the worldwide box office. The latest installment, Fast X, opened No. 1 around the world earlier in May with $320 million in receipts and became the second-biggest global opening of 2023. It crossed the $500 million mark in its second weekend.