The Fast & Furious franchise filled in the blanks when it came to Brian O'Conner's whereabouts between the first two film installments. Paul Walker portrayed the character in a total of six films, but some fans may not be aware that he also starred in the 2003 short film detailing the events after 2001's The Fast and the Furious. Here's what happened to Brian after the first movie in the special prelude, and how it explained his relocation to Miami.
After coming clean about being an undercover cop, Brian wasn't on the best of terms with Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel), the leader of an LA street racing crew. Despite Dom's illegal activities, Brian understood the man's code of ethics. After engaging in one last head-to-head race, Dom totaled his car. Instead of allowing local law enforcement to catch up, Brian gave Dom the keys to the car so both could evade capture.
By the time Brian became the focal point of 2 Fast 2 Furious, the character already fled across the country to Florida. While street racing in the area, Brian was apprehended by the police but instead of jail time, he was offered a deal. To make amends, Brian worked undercover to take down a dangerous drug kingpin. The mystery of how Brian evaded capture for aiding and abetting Dom remained unclear in the film. The question of what happened to Brian between the events of the two movies was actually answered in The Turbo Charged Prelude for 2 Fast 2 Furious, a short directed by Philip G. Atwell. The six-minute was included special home releases of the first movie and select theaters ahead of 2 Fast 2 Furious.
How The Turbo Charged Prelude Set Up 2 Fast 2 Furious
The Turbo Charged Prelude picked up just where the first installment left off. Brian returned home and questioned his decision to let Dom go free. He left behind his police badge before packing up and leaving LA. Brian traveled across Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas where he agreed to any street race he could find. After learning that there was a nationwide manhunt targeting him, Brian had no choice but to ditch his car get a ride from a stranger. The unknown girl, played by Minka Kelly, then dropped him off at a car dealership where he bought his Nissan Skyline.
Brian kept driving across the country, modifying his car with more winnings from street races. At one point, he was challenged by a group of motorcycles to a race on the highway. Brian let them believe he was game for the race but backed off just before they were pulled over by cops. Initially heading to New York, Brian made the decision to head to Miami. When he arrived in the city, Brian took notice of Slap Jack (Michael Ealy) and Orange Julius (Amaury Nolasco), two street racers that he would interact with during 2 Fast 2 Furious. If anything, the Fast & Furious short film proved that Brian had a difficult journey relocating to Miami.
