The absence of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson from Fast & Furious 9 is the reason why the movie is Vin Diesel's opportunity to prove that the car-centric franchise is his. The ninth film in the main Fast Saga will cover a big narrative as it sets up the film series' two-part finale. But aside from the pressure to deliver a satisfying movie, especially considering how many times it's been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic, it also presents a major personal challenge for Diesel as it's the first entry in the main saga to not feature Johnson since he joined in 2011 via Fast Five.
F9 is pitting Dom Torreto against his and Mia's estranged brother Jakob. Being backed up by Cipher, the main villain of Fate of the Furious makes him more dangerous as it appears he's hell-bent on killing his own flesh and blood. It's uncertain what drove them apart but expect the movie to reveal their ugly past. Aside from that, F9 will also see the return of Han Lue, who was believed to be dead for years now. There are high expectations that director Justin Lin will finally have to deliver on their Justice for Han promise, something that the filmmaker said was a primary motivating factor for him to rejoin the franchise.
Considering the many moving parts of F9, it could get away with not featuring Johnson's Luke Hobbs. But, this also adds extra pressure on Diesel and the rest of the cast to prove that The Fast Saga is able to be as successful, if not more, without one of Hollywood's most bankable stars right now.
Why The Rock Isn't Returning For Fast & Furious 9
It's unclear how and when Diesel and Johnson's supposed conflict exactly began, but it was only publicized ahead of the premiere of Fate of the Furious in 2017. At that point, they'd worked together for four movies already, since Johnson joined the franchise through Fast Five. The pair didn't explicitly deny the issue, although to be fair, no one really confirmed it either; nevertheless, comments were made heavily suggesting that rumors of their feud were true. It didn't help that Fast & Furious original cast member Tyrese Gibson came out and had strong words for Johnson, claiming that he was trying to take over the film series by headlining the spin-off, Hobbs & Shaw.
This may have very well caused Johnson to sit out F9; with a string of other projects to focus on, losing the upcoming movie isn't exactly a big deal for him. For what it's worth, it's probably for the best as forcing the issue may have only resulted in a bad experience for everyone involved. It's worth noting, however, that in 2019, Diesel and Johnson appeared to have already made amends. This was further backed up recently when Diesel posted an image of him and Johnson from Fast Five. Unfortunately, patching things up may have come a little too late for Hobbs to be incorporated into F9.
F9 Will Test How Well Fast & Furious Works Without The Rock
Johnson's entry brought a lot of changes into The Fast Saga. Fast Five marked a significant turn in the franchise as the team tackled more elevated and big stakes missions rather than just the standard street-racing-centric adventures. From there, they slowly outgrew their original premise, turning into a full-blown action-adventure blockbuster series that's known for its over-the-top action set pieces. This significant change made a positive impact on its box office numbers. Fast Five almost doubled Fast & Furious' sales, pocketing a total of more than $630 million. Fast and Furious 6 and Fate of the Furious nabbed $789 million and $1.236 billion respectively. Meanwhile, Furious 7 sets the record for the franchise's highest grosser with $1.51 billion. Overall, Five out of the nine Fast & Furious films thus far, including the offshoot, Hobbs & Shaw, featured Johnson's character. As F9 moves ahead with Hobbs, it's interesting to see how the film with fare in terms of narrative and box office performance compared to previous movies in The Fast Saga with him.
Will F9 Be As Successful Without The Rock?
Over the last several years, Johnson's career has soared into greater heights with a string of hits under his belt. In 2020, he has crowned the highest-paid actor in Hollywood, his second consecutive year bagging the title and proving his popularity. His involvement in any project definitely draws more interest to it, so how will his absence affect F9? It's difficult to predict just how successful the upcoming feature will be, but there sure is a lot of hype surrounding the project even without the confirmation that Hobbs is not in it. Given this, the impact may be minimal since The Fast Saga is already a well-established franchise. Granted that Hobbs' entry in Fast Five helped boost its popularity, it already had an existing fan base who is committed to it long before Johnson's involvement. Between the impending showdown between Dom and his brother, Jakob, and the return of Han which could also lead to more The Fast Saga players returning, fans' are definitely intrigued. The multiple delays because of the ongoing pandemic can also bolster people's interest since everyone is craving the communal thrill of watching films in theaters and F9 is the perfect kind of movie for that.
F9 Can Prove Fast & Furious Is Vin Diesel's Franchise
Depending on how F9 performs at the box office without Johnson, Diesel can prove that The Fast Saga is his franchise. Not that there's any doubt that he's its main driving factor, but Johnson is too big of a star to be ignored while in it. Since he joined, it has only become more popular and oftentimes, this can be attributed to his debut as Luke Hobbs considering his star power. It's also one of the reasons why the spin-off Hobbs and Shaw was greenlit; despite not featuring any of the original characters, Paramount thought that Johnson's star power combined with Jason Statham's appeal would be more than enough to launch an offshoot of movies from one of their most popular franchises. But, it's important to remember that it was Diesel and Paul Walker, who played his original partner-in-crime Brian O'Conner who built it from the ground up. Long before franchises were a thing, The Fast Saga has been slowly establishing itself with a string of enjoyable blockbusters. Diesel is a key creative and producing player in the franchise in general, as well; he's involved in every aspect of it, thus making him the single most important person in the film series. Fast & Furious 9's potential success will simply emphasize that.
