Dwayne Johnson To Rejoin ‘Fast and Furious’ Franchise

Dwayne Johnson has gone from [inlink id="the-rock-wont-be-in-fast-movies" text="denying he’d ever return to the Fast and Furious"] franchise to getting his own standalone film. Following the actor’s surprise cameo in a mid-credits scene in the recent Fast X, Universal Pictures announced Thursday (June 1) that his character Luke Hobbs will lead an as-yet-untitled spin-off. Johnson, 51, first joined the franchise in 2011 with Fast Five. He then co-starred opposite Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw in 2019’s spin-off Hobbs & Shaw. His reappearance may have surprised fans, considering repeated comments he would not be returning as Luke Hobbs, citing ongoing issues with co-star Vin Diesel, who plays Dominic Toretto. In 2021, Johnson objected to an Instagram post in which Diesel, 55, [inlink id="vin-diesel-begs-the-rock-to-return-for-fast-10" text="publicly asked him to rejoin him onscreen"]. [inlink id="dwayne-johnson-vin-diesel-will-never-get-along" text="RELATED: Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel Agreed They Will Never Get Along"] “I was firm yet cordial with my words and said that I would always be supportive of the cast and always root for the franchise to be successful, but that there was no chance I would return,” Johnson told CNN at the time. He also stated that he only agreed to appear in 2017’s The Fate of the Furious if he wouldn't share any screen time with Diesel. Apparently, Fast X director Louis Leterrier was able to persuade Johnson to make a cameo by showing him the film. “We sort of looked at each other from across the room and winked a few months back, saying, ‘We should work together,’” he told The Hollywood Reporter recently. “He came to see the movie and really loved it, and then we started talking.” Family Johnson posted a video yesterday on his socials celebrating the newly announced Luke Hobbs film with a cheeky pun. He captioned the video: "Hope you’ve got your funderwear on… HOBBS IS BACK. And he just got lei’d." He also addressed his feud with Diesel head-on. "Last summer @vindiesel and I put all the past behind us," he wrote. "We’ll lead with brotherhood and resolve - and always take care of the franchise, characters & FANS that we love." Furthermore, Dwayne addressed their "differences" in the video as well. "We've been brothers for years," the actor said. "When you lead with a number one, resolve, but also you just think about the future. You just think about plans that are much bigger than ourselves." https://twitter.com/TheRock/status/1664332676323483660?s=20 Jason Momoa, who plays Dante Reyes in Fast X, commented on the Instagram announcement, "HIIII DADDY. I’m ready…and waiting -DANTE." Variety reported that the newly announced film will link the events of Fast X and 2025’s Fast X: Part II, which is scheduled to be the original franchise’s final film — although Diesel has teased its final chapter may become a trilogy instead. https://twitter.com/Fandango/status/1657092979939500036 [select-listicle listicle_id="493606" syndication_name="dwayne-johnson-10-best-movies" description="yes"]