In Defense of “The Fast and Furious” Franchise
And why letting go is hard to do
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Let’s be honest, when we think about the movies that are considered superior due to the impressive acting chops of the cast and the storylines that stick, even years later, the roster of films from The Fast and Furious franchise don’t necessarily appear on our radar
That being said, we also can’t discount the cultural impact of the franchise that happens to be an endearing testament to its longevity.
Former pro wrestler turned actor Dave Bautista made headlines some weeks ago when he abruptly shut down an eager fan on Twitter, who thought it would be awesome for his idol to join the ranks of his counterparts, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and John Cena, by appearing as a prized disrupter in another ambitious spinoff.
The swift response sparked shock and amazement due to the crudeness of the deliverer, who didn’t bother to hold back his disdain for a box office juggernaut, by basically confirmed the unlikelihood that he would be sparring against Hobbs & Shaw or even a one on one with the mighty Dom Toretto — anytime soon.
Ouch!
But to be fair, Bautista isn’t exactly a loner when it comes to the legions of naysayers, who are perplexed by the survivability of globally-revered brand that many believe should’ve been put to rest after the untimely death of Paul Walker, who embodied the role of “good cop/bank heister” — Brian O’ Connor.
When the original template was slated for the big screen treatment, only Paul Walker had signed on, and this was even before the script was complete. The blond, blue-eyed surfer from Southern California had just wrapped up the 1998 thriller, The Skulls, and the producers of that film saw dollar signs with the up and coming stunner, who managed to steal the show from main star — Joshua Jackson
Walker came up with the idea of the undercover cop in Los Angeles, who infiltrates a family of renegades with a penchant for illegal…
