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American actor Vin Diesel’s surprise pop-up at the 2025 FuelFest Los Angeles has fans sharing their takes on his change in appearance.
Diesel, 57, was on hand at the music festival and auto expo event at the Pomona Fairplex on June 28. He helped announce that the next “Fast & Furious” movie, tentatively titled “Fast X: Part 2,” will hit theaters in 2027.
In addition, Diesel informed “Fast & Furious” fans that the next chapter in the franchise will return to Los Angeles and the main plot will center on street racing again.
Diesel also shocked FuelFest attendees by confirming his Dom Toretto character will reunite with the late Paul Walker’s Brian O’Conner character in the upcoming sequel.
Walker was killed in a car accident on Nov. 30, 2013, at the age of 40. He was in the middle of shooting “Furious 7” at the time of his death. Universal had to put the production of the motion picture on hold.
Once filming resumed, Paul’s brothers Caleb and Cody Walker were used as stand-ins for “Furious 7.” The filmmakers also relied on CGI to complete some scenes by digitally overlaying Paul’s face on other people’s bodies.
“Just yesterday I was will Universal Studios,” Diesel told the FuelFest crowd. “The studio said to me, ‘Vin, can we please have the finale of Fast & Furious [in] April 2027?’ I said under three conditions.”
He continued, “The first is to bring the franchise back to LA. The second thing was to return to the car culture, to the street racing. … The third thing was reuniting Dom and Brian O’Conner. That is what you’re going to get in the finale!”
Diesel’s three-part announcement at FuelFest Los Angeles excited “Fast & Furious” enthusiasts around the world. However, some social media users were more interested in the One Race Film founder’s weight.
“He eats Fast and Furious!!!” joked a troll on the Instagram app. A second jokester commented, “Eating fast food in a furious way.” A third stated, “Vin lookin fluffy!”
One person suggested, “And the 4th thing… You need to relax on the late-night burgers and fries with a milkshake and cookies for dessert every night.”
Other responses took issue with the forthcoming“Fast & Furious” feature film. For instance, a critic expressed, “We are seven movies past where the series should have ended.”
“I thought the last movie was the finale [to be honest],” posted another unenthused Instagram commenter. Additionally, someone declared, “No, don’t bring Paul Walker’s character back. Let that man rest in peace.”
The original “The Fast and the Furious” premiered in 2001. In addition to Diesel and Walker, the first installment in the franchise starred Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Rick Yune, Chad Lindberg, Johnny Strong, and Ted Levine.
Diesel went on to appear in “Fast & Furious,” “Fast Five,” “Fast & Furious 6,” “Furious 7,” “The Fate of the Furious,” “F9,” and “Fast X.” He also starred in, wrote, and directed the “Fast & Furious” short film titled “Los Bandolero.”
Before his passing, Walker was featured in “2 Fast 2 Furious,” “Fast & Furious,” “Fast Five,” “Fast & Furious 6,” and “Furious 7.” The former amateur boxer played Conner in “The Turbo Charged Prelude for 2 Fast 2 Furious” short film as well.
The “Fast & Furious” slate of flicks has grossed more than $7.2 billion at the global box office. “The Fate of the Furious” and “Furious 7” both crossed the $1 billion mark in lifetime gross. “Fast X: Part 2” is set to be the franchise’s final outing.
Atlanta-bred rapper Ludacris, who plays Tej Parker in the film series, also discussed the forthcoming eleventh entry. In 2024, he told People, “It’s almost like the beginning of something new, so I don’t feel like it’ll ever truly end either, but you never know.”
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