Fast Five changed Fast and Furious in many ways, but one Dominic Toretto and Luke Hobbs scene in particular shaped the future of the franchise. The first Fast and Furious movie to feature The Rock, Fast Five had the biggest budget for a Fast and Furious film up until that point – something that was reflected by the film’s large cast and global setting. Still, more than bringing in The Rock or increasing the scale of the story, one key Fast Five has to do with hand-to-hand fight scenes.
Perhaps the highest point of the movie, Fast Five’s Hobbs vs. Dom fight was the first long, high-stakes hand-to-hand fight sequence in the history of the franchise. Fast & Furious (2009) featured a brief fight scene involving Dom and Brian, but it was more of an emotional brawl between two grieving friends than a proper, choreographed fight. In Fast Five, Toretto was Hobb’s mission, and their fight served as the culmination of an intense rivalry built throughout the movie. Unlike the previous four films in the saga, Fast Five’s most memorable action sequence was not a car chase or a street race, but rather a hand-to-hand fight scene – a change that echoed through all subsequent Fast and Furious movies.
Fast & Furious’ Fight Scenes Are Now Part Of The Saga’s DNA
During its first decade, the Fast and Furious franchise was never defined by fight scenes. However, having The Rock’s Hobbs fighting Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto in a highly choreographed fight sequence in which both actors could shine set a new bar for the Fast and Furious action pieces. The increasingly ridiculous yet always entertaining Fast and Furious car stunts continued to be part of the franchise, but there was now a new level of expectation for the Fast and Furious films regarding the fight scenes. With some of Hollywood’s biggest action stars such as Jason Statham and John Cena joining the Fast and Furious franchise, car stunts were no longer enough. Fast & Furious 6’s subway station fight, Furious 7’s Hobbs vs. Shaw, and The Fate of the Furious prison fight sequence are just some examples of how Fast and Furious’ fight scenes have now become part of the franchise’s identity.
Fast & Furious Keeps Setting New Highs For Its Fight Scenes
This tradition of incredible hand-to-hand fight sequences set by Fast Five’s Hobbs vs. Dom scene made it so that future Fast and Furious movies always have to find a way to top the previous film’s fights. While the idea that everything has to be bigger than the previous installments may have played against the Fast and Furious franchise when it comes to car action, it certainly led the Fast and Furious movies to always feature intense, creative hand-to-hand fight scenes. Whereas the Fast and Furious car stunts can only get so creative before becoming silly, there is no limit as to where the saga can take its fight sequences.
With so many action stars involved in the Fast and Furious movies, it makes sense that the fight scenes are now as much in the spotlight as the car action. Fast Five’s Hobbs vs. Dom fight set a new precedent for the franchise, and it proved that there could be more to Fast and Furious than just car stunts. It remains to be seen what Fast X will feature in terms of hand-to-hand combat.
