Fast & Furious 9 Is Actually About The Team’s Women
Fast & Furious 9 is going to spotlight the women on the team.
This article is more than 2 years old
Vin Diesel’s association with the Fast & Furious franchise is synonymous with the franchise itself, with newer appearances by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Jason Statham only adding to the story mythos. With so much manpower on the screen, it’s no wonder the media considers Fast & Furious as one of the most testosterone-laden franchises Hollywood has ever produced. Well, until now. It’s girl-power time, and Fast & Furious 9 actually brings the franchise’s female characters to the forefront.
According to Movieweb, an online destination for movie enthusiasts, Fast & Furious 9 will put the spotlight on the female characters of the franchise, rather than just the men. It’s not that we won’t be seeing Vin Diesel and the crew guns-a-blazing and cars-a-racing, but the franchise won’t focus strictly on them. The Fast & Furious 9 entry will give its female characters more depth and more backstory. This information was disclosed by Michelle Rodriguez, aka Letty Ortiz, who’s been with the franchise from its inception. The actress was very vocal about wanting the women of Fast & Furious 9 to have more substantial roles, and the producers agreed.
While the franchise still remains dedicated to illegal racing, heists, and espionage, the producers hired a writer who will specifically focus on fleshing out some more substantial characterizations for the females of the series. They’ve also done their best to keep some big-name actresses in the franchise in Charlize Theron and Helen Mirren. Fast & Furious 9 features a villainous duo, with Charlize Theron as Cipher, the cyberterrorist, and John Cena as Dominic Torreto’s brother Jakob, who, above everything else, wants to prove that he’s better than Dom. Aside from Cipher and Letty, the movie will also feature Mia, Dom’s sister, and Ramsey, a tech genius among the protagonists.
Apart from Fast & Furious 9, Vin Diesel confirmed that an all-female Fast & Furious movie is currently in development, with Rodriguez as the leading role. This might be a female-oriented spin-off version of Hobbs & Shaw; who knows? However, Fast & Furious 9 has another recurring female character – Queenie, portrayed by the acclaimed actress Helen Mirren. She first appeared in an uncredited role in The Fate of the Furious (Fast & Furious 8) and later in Fast & Furious Presents Hobbs and Shaw, though she was credited as Magdalene Shaw in the latter.
The villainous or heroic nature of Helen’s role in the upcoming Fast & Furious 9 still remains undisclosed, but it’s fantastic that she’s joining the female cast again. The franchise’s newfound emphasis on its female characters should give even more diversity to its already multi-talented character roster, which can only be a good thing for the series. With only two more movies left after F9 for the main series, taking the time to better flesh out some of the women characters gives them more opportunity for future spin-off series if the franchise continues. It also serves to keep these remaining movies fresh and exciting for the main series.
Fast & Furious 9 has completed production and is set to release on June 25, 2021, giving Michelle Rodriguez, Helen Mirren, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel, Charlize Theron, more spotlight in the driver’s seat.
