Fast & Furious 10 Can Do What Vin Diesel’s Movies Have Always Avoided
Fast & Furious 10 will be the first of two films that will conclude the Fast saga, and that makes it capable of making a storytelling decision that no Vin Diesel film has ever made. After F9 showed that even during a pandemic the franchise can do well, Fast 10 and Fast 11 were announced as the two next and final Fast & Furious films. Initially slated for April 7, 2023, Fast & Furious 10 is now set to premiere on May 19, 2023.
F9 director and longtime Fast & Furious collaborator Justin Lin was chosen to direct both Fast 10 and Fast 10. Although little is known about the story of Fast 10, some castings for the film have already been announced. Aquaman's Jason Momoa and The Suicide Squad's Daniela Melchior have joined the Fast franchise, the former in a villain role and the latter in an as-yet-unrevealed role.
After nine movies in which everything ended well for Vin Diesel's character and his family, Fast 10 can finally see the heroes of Fast & Furious being defeated. As the first film in a two-part finale, Fast 10 doesn't have to bother with concluding the story in an uplifting tone. On the contrary, a two-part finale usually requires the first chapter to end on a major cliffhanger, such as the heroes being defeated. A great example of that storytelling trick was Avengers: Infinity War and the following Avengers: Endgame. In the third Avengers movie, Thanos is the one who emerges victorious after killing half the universe, and it wouldn't be until the fourth movie that the Mad Titan would be defeated. Fast 10 can do something similar, with Toretto's family losing to Jason Momoa's character only to strike back in Fast 11.
This would be a much-needed change in the structure of the Fast & Furious films, which after more than 20 years after The Fast and The Furious has become extremely predictable. Fast & Furious usually introduces a scary villain at the beginning of each film, followed by redemption or major loss for the said villain at the end of the movie and a family barbecue at Toretto's or Brian's house. If that's what Vin Diesel is envisioning for Fast 10, then it wouldn't make sense to make the last two films a two-part finale. There must be some element that unites Fast 10 and 11, and the heroes suffering a huge loss in the first one would be a perfect choice. The heroes always coming out on top isn't unique to the Fast & Furious movies, and it's also very common in movies from action stars like Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson. As part of some sort of personal brand, it's rare to see Vin Diesel’s or The Rock’s characters getting beat up or ending a movie on the losing side.
Allowing the heroes of Fast and Furious to be defeated. This could also help Jason Momoa's character to establish himself as one of the best villains in the franchise, as he would be the first to have a victory against Toretto. Braga and Deckard Shaw both had the potential, but the retcons of Letty's and Han's deaths prevented that from happening. That's not to say an important Fast & Furious character should die in Fast 10, but at least some sort of significant loss for Toretto's team should be enough to raise the stakes to Fast 11.
The Fast & Furious franchise continues to outdo itself with every movie, and there's no reason Fast 10 can't continue to push the boundaries of the franchise and Vin Diesel’s movies in general. Considering Fast 11 will be the last Fast & Furious movie, Fast & Furious 10 is the franchise's last chance to show Toretto and his friends struggling with the consequences of a defeat. That would make the inevitable victory in Fast 11 more significant and the saga's ending more rewarding.