Fast & Furious 9: The Fast Saga

F9 (also known as F9: The Fast Saga or Fast & Furious 9: The Fast Saga) is a 2021 American action film directed by Justin Lin, who along with Daniel Casey wrote the screenplay based on a story by Lin, Alfredo Botello. , and Casey. It is the sequel to The Fate of the Furious (2017), the ninth major installment and the tenth installment in the Fast and Furious franchise overall. It stars Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, John Cena, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jordana Brewster, Sung Kang, Michael Rooker, Helen Mirren, Kurt Russell and Charlize Theron as well as Vin Diesel as Dominic Toretto. In the film, Toretto and the team come together to stop a world-shattering plot involving his younger brother Jacob (Cena).

With a ninth film planned since 2014, Lin was confirmed as director in October 2017, returning to the franchise for the first time since directing Fast & Furious 6 (2013). F9 is the first film in the franchise not written by Chris Morgan since 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003). Dwayne Johnson, who appeared in the previous four films, was announced to return in April 2017, but confirmed his absence in January 2019. The rest of the cast was finalized with the addition of Cena six months later. Brian Tyler returned to compose the score. Principal photography began in June 2019 and lasted until that November, with filming locations including London, Edinburgh, Tbilisi, Los Angeles and Thailand.

F9 was originally scheduled for release on April 19, 2019 by Universal Pictures, but was delayed several times, first due to the planned release of Hobbs and Shaw (2019) and No Time to Die (2021) and then the Covid-19 pandemic. It was first released in South Korea on May 19, 2021; It was released in the UK on 24 June, followed by a US release on 25 June. The film received mixed reviews from critics, with some praising the stunts and Lin’s direction, while it was criticized for its unrealistic action sequences, lack of plot, and revision of tropes. It set several Pandemic box office records and grossed over $726 million worldwide, becoming the fifth-highest-grossing film of 2021. It was followed by Fast X in 2023.

Details

In 1989, Jack Toretto participated in a late model race at a short track, with his sons Dominic and Jacob working on the pit crew. Dom argues with rival racer Kenny Linder about his dirty tricks. During the race, Linder’s car clips Jack’s bumper, causing his car to crash and burn, killing him. A week later, Dom is arrested for beating Linder to death. While serving his sentence, he recalls that Jacob worked on their father’s car the day he died and comes to the conclusion that Jacob killed their father. Upon release, Dom confronts and challenges Jacob to a contest, forcing him to leave town when he loses.

Thirty years later, Dom is retired and raising his son Brian with his wife Letty Ortiz. Roman Pearce, Tej Parker and Ramsey arrive with news that, shortly after arresting the cyber terrorist Cypher, Mr. Nobody’s plane is attacked by rogue agents, who kidnap Cypher and crash land in Montequinto, a fictional country in Central America. Realizing that Jacob is involved, Dom agrees to help them. Searching the plane, they find part of a device called Project Ares, which can hack any computer weapons system. The group is ambushed by a private army led by Jacob, who steals the device. Michael Stasiak helps Dom’s crew escape to their safe house in the Caspian Sea, and Dom’s sister Mia comes to help. The team learns that Han Lu is connected to Project Aries, and Letty and Mia travel to Tokyo to investigate.

Meanwhile, Jacob meets Otto, his collaborator and financier. Cypher, who has been holed up in their base, tells Jacob that Aries’ other half is in Edinburgh. Dom meets his father’s mechanic, Buddy, who took Jacob in after his exile, and learns that Jacob is in London. In Tokyo, Letty and Mia find Han alive with his ward Elle. Roman and Tej travel to Germany to recruit Sean Boswell, Twinky and Earl, who are working on a “rocket car”. In London, Dom meets Queenie Shaw, who gives him Jacob’s location. Dom confronts Otto and Jacob at a party held at Otto’s mansion; Otto arrests Dom, but Dom’s old friend Leisa rescues him. Tej, Roman and Ramsay join the Dome in Edinburgh, where Jacob is using an electromagnet to steal the other half of the Project Aries device. Tej and Roman find the truck containing the electromagnet; As they fight Otto’s men, Ramsay commands the truck to chase after Otto. Dom interrupts Jacob and the two fight across town. Before Otto can take Jacob out, Ramsay drives his car off the road and uses electromagnets to capture Jacob.

At the safe house, Han reveals that he was hired by Mr. Nobody to protect Ellie and Project Aries, as Ellie’s DNA is its biometric activation key. When Jacob goes rogue and teams up with Otto, they use Deckard Shaw to fake Han’s death and protect Ellie. Otto and his men attack the safehouse and free Jacob, who reveals to Dom that their father, wanting to escape deep debt, ordered Jacob to throw the race with his car. Jacob and Otto kidnap Ellie and take the other half of the Project Mesh device. Otto launches a satellite into orbit, while Jacob arrives and Aries activates Aries. They began uploading Aries to satellite, driving across Tbilisi in an armored truck.

Dom, Letty, Mia, Ramsey, and Han race to stop uploading. As Mia and Han attempt to breach the truck, Otto reveals that he and Cypher have teamed up and throws Jacob out of the truck. Jacob is rescued by Dom and Mia, and helps them access the truck. Using the rocket car, Tej and Roman destroy the satellite by entering orbit and stopping the upload. Cypher uses a UAV to bomb the truck in an attempt to kill Dom, but inadvertently kills Otto. Dom uses the ricocheting truck to destroy Cypher’s drone, which is revealed to be simulated, and he escapes. Dom and Mia reconcile with Jacob, and Dom allows him to escape custody with his car keys, finally forgiving Jacob for his role in their father’s death. Tej and Roman reach the International Space Station and return safely to Earth. The team celebrates their success with a barbecue at Dom’s house. While preparing to say grace, Brian O’Connor’s car pulls into the driveway.
In a mid-credits scene, Deckard confronts Han.

Cast And Characters

Vin Diesel as Dominic Toretto: An ex-criminal and professional street racer who has retired and settled down with his wife, Letty, and his son, Brian Marcos. Diesel’s son Vincent Sinclair portrays a young Dominic, while Vinny Bennett portrays a teenage Dominic.
Michelle Rodriguez Letty Ortiz: Dom’s wife and an ex-criminal and professional street racer. Azia Diniya Hale plays a young Letty.
Tyrese Gibson as Roman Pierce: A former habitual criminal, expert street racer and a member of Dom’s team.
Chris “Ludacris” Bridges as Tez Parker: A mechanic from Miami and a member of Dom’s team.
John Cena as Jacob Toretto: Dom and Mia’s estranged brother who works as a master thief, assassin and high-powered driver; Also Mr. Someone’s rogue agent. Finn Cole plays a young Jacob.
Nathalie Emmanuel as Ramsay: A British computer hacktivist and member of Dom’s team.
Jordana Brewster as Mia Toretto: Dom and Jacob’s sister and a former team member who has settled down with her partner Brian O’Connor and their two children. Sienna Agudong plays a young Mia.
Sung Kang as Han Lu: A member of Dom’s team who is believed to have been killed.
Michael Rooker as Friend: An auto mechanic who relates to Dom’s past as a member of his father’s pit crew.
Helen Mirren as Magdalene “Queenie” Elmanson-Shaw: Dom’s former enemy Deckard and Owen’s mother.
Kurt Russell as Mr. Nobody: An intelligence operative and leader of a covert ops team.
Charlize Theron as Cypher: A criminal mastermind and cyberterrorist who is an enemy of Dom’s team.
Thu Ersted Rasmussen as Otto: A nobleman’s son who is Jacob’s financier.
Anna Sawai as Ellie: A girl whose scientist parents were involved in Project Aries and were killed when she was young. He befriends Han after saving his life and learns martial arts and weapons to defend himself. Juju Zhang portrays a young Ellie.
In addition, J.D. Pardo stars as Jack Toretto, Jim Parrack as Kenny Linder, Martin Ford as Sue, and Cardi B portrays Leisa, a woman who shares a history with Dom and Magdalene. Carson Kern and Igby Rigney portray the younger versions of Vince and Jesse, respectively.

Lucas Black, Don Omar, and Shea Whigham reprise their respective roles as Sean Boswell, Santos, and Agent Michael Stasiak from the previous film, while Shad Moss and Jason Tobin also reprise their roles as Twinky and Earl from The Fast and The Furious. Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006). Cered and Ozuna portray younger versions of Leo and Santos, respectively. Jason Statham reprises his role as Deckard Shaw in an uncredited cameo appearance during the end credits, and Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny appears as Lookout. Gal Gadot appears as Gisele Yashar via archival footage.

Box Office

F9 grossed $173 million in the United States and Canada and $553.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $726.2 million. It was the fifth-highest-grossing film of 2021.

In the United States and Canada, F9 was estimated to gross $55–65 million in its opening weekend from 4,179 theaters. The film earned $30 million on its first day (including $7.1 million from Thursday night previews), both best grosses of the Pandemic period. It debuted to $70 million, the highest-grossing weekend since Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker ($72.4 million) in December 2019. As with previous Fast and Furious films, the audience was diverse (including 37% Hispanic, 35% Caucasian, 16% Black, and 8% Asian) and skewed toward both younger (51% under 25) and male (57%) crowds. In its second weekend, the film fell 65% to $23 million, topping the box office. With Universal’s F9, The Boss Baby: Family Business, and The Forever Purge finishing in the top three spots, it marked the first time since February 2005 that a single studio accomplished the feat. It crossed $100 million domestically and $500 million internationally in record time during the COVID-19 pandemic era. The film grossed $11.4 million but was dethroned the following weekend by newcomer Black Widow, then grossed $7.6 million in the fourth frame, finishing in fourth place.

In its five-day international opening weekend, starting on May 19, F9 was estimated to gross $160-180 million from eight countries, including China, Russia and South Korea. It debuted to $163 million, the biggest international opening for a Hollywood film since the pandemic began in March 2020. It also set the Pandemic-record for IMAX gross ($14 million) and was the second-biggest international opening of May, despite playing in 26 fewer countries than current record-holder Captain America: Civil War. The weekend’s top markets were China ($136 million; the country’s second-biggest franchise opening), South Korea ($9.9 million), Russia ($8.3 million), Saudi Arabia ($2.67 million), and the United Arab Emirates ($2.67 million; $2.64 million). The film grossed $30.8 million in its second weekend of international release, including $20.3 million (-85%) in China and $3.7 million (-42%) in South Korea.

About

Directed by	Justin Lin
Screenplay by	·         Daniel Casey ·         Justin Lin
Story by	·         Justin Lin ·         Alfredo Botello ·         Daniel Casey
Based on	Characters by Gary Scott Thompson
Produced by	·         Neal H. Moritz ·         Vin Diesel ·         Justin Lin ·         Jeffrey Kirschenbaum ·         Joe Roth ·         Clayton Townsend ·         Samantha Vincent
Starring	·         Vin Diesel ·         Michelle Rodriguez ·         Tyrese Gibson ·         Chris “Ludacris” Bridges ·         John Cena ·         Nathalie Emmanuel ·         Jordana Brewster ·         Sung Kang ·         Helen Mirren ·         Kurt Russell ·         Charlize Theron
Cinematography	Stephen F. Windon
Edited by	·         Dylan Highsmith ·         Kelly Matsumoto ·         Greg D’Auria
Music by	Brian Tyler
Production companies	·         Original Film ·         One Race Films ·         Perfect Storm Entertainment ·         Roth/Kirschenbaum Films
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release dates	·         May 19, 2021 (South Korea) ·         June 25, 2021 (United States)
Running time	143 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$200–225 million
Box office	$726.2 million

ScreenShots