Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel are the last two actors that fans probably expect to see in a movie together these days. But that’s exactly what just happened. In a surprising twist, Johnson’s Luke Hobbs rejoins Diesel and the gang in the recently released Fast X.
Sure, Hobbs was never killed off in the Fast & Furious universe (unlike Gal Gadot’s Gisele, who is suddenly brought back from the dead), but no one expected him to take part in the movie considering that Johnson and Diesel have had an ongoing feud for years now (although some might say the whole thing is fake). So, does that mean that the two stars are friends again?
Why Doesn’t The Rock Like Vin Diesel?
As far as everyone knows, the feud between two of Hollywood’s most popular leading men dates back to 2016 when Johnson and Diesel worked together on the franchise’s eighth installment, The Fate of the Furious.
At that time, the blow-up between the two co-stars was rather unexpected considering that Johnson had already been part of the franchise since Fast Five.
In since-deleted posts on social media, Johnson famously called out his male co-stars for alleged unprofessional conduct while on set (in contrast, the actor had a lot of praise for the franchise’s females stars, which include Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Charlize Theron, and Helen Mirren).
And while Johnson did take down his posts on Instagram and Facebook, the actor also said later on that he had no regrets about what he wrote.
Since then, Johnson also made it clear that he wasn’t going to be part of future Fast & Furious movies, although he did agree to work on the 2019 spinoff Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.
When the franchise returned with Fast X though, fans were surprised to see Johnson appear in the latest movie. That said, he doesn’t star in the movie itself. Instead, his cameo is limited to the film’s post-credits scene where it is revealed that Hobbs is Dante’s (Jason Momoa) next target.
Given the way things ended in the movie though, it seems that Johnson’s involvement in Fast X Part II is all but certain.
Did Vin Diesel Ask The Rock To Come Back For Fast X?
Despite Johnson’s previous social media posts, Diesel made an appeal to the actor via Instagram in 2021 where he publicly asked The Rock to return. However, Johnson slammed Diesel’s efforts as manipulative.
During a 2021 interview with CNN, the actor also revealed that he had already spoken with Diesel “privately” where he made it clear to him there was “no chance I would return.”
However, that all changed when Fast X’s new director Louis Leterrier (he replaced Justin Lin) apparently reached out to Johnson himself. While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, the director admitted to inviting the actor and his team to watch the movie in the hopes of getting Johnson interested to make a return.
Fortunately, it did the trick. “So he came to see the movie and really loved it, and then we started talking,” Leterrier recalled of his meeting with Johnson.
“It was very smooth, and frankly, as a fan, I could not conceive continuing the franchise without either Dwayne or Gal Gadot.”
Are Vin Diesel And Dwayne Johnson Friends Again?
Since Diesel and Johnson still didn’t share any screen time on Fast X, it’s unclear if the two had the chance to spend some time together on the film’s set. That said, it looks like they may have been some interaction between the two as Leterrier also teased about brokering a “peace treaty.”
And while Diesel didn’t exactly talk about Johnson while doing press tours for the new movie, he did praise the “many characters and great talent” in Fast X. The franchise’s main star also talked about how hard it was to keep both Johnson and Gadot’s cameos a secret the entire time.
Without singling out Johnson, Diesel also told Variety, “I’m so excited to have them back home and even more excited to see fan reactions and to see how happy it makes people.”
Meanwhile, anyone hoping to see Toretto and Hobbs together onscreen should not lose hope. Aside from the franchise’s supposed final film, Diesel has also announced that he was already working on several Fast and Furious spinoffs, which include a female-led project (although Rodriguez has already hinted that she may not necessarily return for this one).
And while specifics regarding these spinoffs have yet to be revealed, it is more than likely at least one of them would include Johnson’s Hobbs who has become one of the franchise’s most popular characters from the time he first pursued Toretto in Fast Five.
At the same time, it’s also too early to rule out a second Hobbs and Shaw film (despite the first film not exactly being a worldwide box office hit).
In other words, Diesel and Johnson have plenty more opportunities to work together. And whether they like it or not, it’s almost like they would be family for life.
It was already previously announced that the second installment of Fast X will be released sometime in 2025 and this time around, it’s likely that fans won’t have to wait till the post-credits scenes to see Johnson.
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