After the release of 2001's The Fast and the Furious, it would've been hard to see it becoming a blockbuster franchise. It was popular but not something you'd expect to be a billion-dollar series. That was even less likely after Vin Diesel missed most of the two sequels.

However, he and the rest of the original cast returned in 2009 and since then, the Fast & Furious franchise has become one of the highest-grossing in movie history. They've gone bigger with each entry, introduced interesting new characters, and they're all fun. While not all were critical hits, the users on Letterboxd have been mostly positive about each installment.

Updated on November 17th, 2022, by Kevin Pantoja: The news that Fast X is on the horizon has fans of the Fast and the Furious franchise as excited as ever. Add in the rumors of an all-female spin-off and the success of 2021's F9 and there are plenty of reasons to be pumped. Fans can rewatch the iconic series in full or if they want to simply check out the best of the bunch, the ratings on Letterboxd can help you figure out which those are.

F9 (2021) - 2.56

Stream On HBO Max

Jakob Toretto mocks Dom after getting released by Otto's men in F9

The latest entry into the franchise, F9, surprisingly has the lowest score of the series. It seems like most of the criticism comes from the fact that even for a franchise known for being over the top, this went a bit too far with storylines like two characters going into space in a car.

On the plus side, fans were elated at the return of Han and John Cena's turn as Dom's brother Jakob Toretto made him one of the better villains of the series. It also set the tone for the final few installments. Most reviews have it at three stars (22%).

Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2019) - 2.77

Rent On Apple TV

Hobbs and Shaw walk while holding a hammer and a bat, respectively

On paper, this should've been so much better. By the time 2019 rolled around, the series had become massive and knew how to get mileage out of the over-the-top high-octane scenes. Throw in Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham playing off of each other and Idris Elba and Vanessa Kirby in the supporting cast and Hobbs & Shaw was a recipe for success.

The cast was praised, including the surprise appearances from Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Hart. However, many fans felt it was a bit bloated with a runtime of over two hours. 27% of the reviews give it the three star treatment, with it getting lower on each side as it goes on.

2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) - 2.82

Stream On Peacock

Devon Aoki and Ludacris check out an engine in 2 Fast 2 Furious

It's usually widely agreed upon that 2 Fast 2 Furious is the worst entry in this series. That's not to say that it's a bad movie, it just comes at a really weird time. Without the original cast other than Paul Walker, it at times feels like a straight-to-DVD sequel rather than a major theatrical one.

The scores on this were less than enthusiastic as most reviews gave it either three stars (20%) or two stars (17%). Still, the 2003 sequel was important as it introduced Roman Pierce (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej Parker (Ludacris), who would go on to appear in multiple foll0w-ups.

The Fate Of The Furious (2017) - 2.82

Rent On Vudu

Dom holds his son Brian in Fate of the Furious

With F9 on the horizon and Hobbs & Shaw being a spin-off, 2017's The Fate of the Furious was technically the most recent entry in the series. By this point, it could be considered tough to find new things for these characters to face. Thankfully, this film found a unique concept.

It used a cyberterrorist (Charlize Theron) to pit Dominic against his family, giving eveyrthing a whole new spin. That, plus the huge scale that a lot of the later movies have and the steady hand of F. Gary Gray as director made this mostly work. Again, three stars is the common score (28%), with three and a half (15%) following closely behind.

Fast & Furious (2009) - 2.84

Stream On Peacock

Dom reaches out of his car to hold Letty, who is on the windshield

In terms of sheer importance, this was arguably the most pivotal movie in the franchise. Released in 2009, Fast & Furious was the fourth installment and it brought back the original cast of Walker, Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jordana Brewster, which set the tone going forward.

While it was nice to have the cast back and the twist of Rodriguez's Letty dying (apparently) was interesting, it doesn't quite hold up. 30% of the reviews have it smack dab in the middle at three stars, showing that this is a good but not quite great entry into the beloved series.

The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006) - 2.97

Stream On HBO Max

Han drifts through Tokyo in an orange and black Mazda RX7 in Tokyo Drift

By many longtime fans of the series, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift is often considered to be the underrated darling of them all. It's understandable that so many overlooked it considering none of the original cast returned for this third entry released in 2006.

Ultimately, it proved to be an important one. Justin Lin took over as director and helped develop a style that would run through the following movies. There was also the debut of Han (Sung Kang), one of the most popular characters from the franchise. While three stars is the typical rating (25%), there are actually a solid number of perfect five star scores (5%).

Fast & Furious 6 (2013) - 3.09

Stream On HBO Max

Roman dives onto another car

Justin Lin is arguably at his very best behind the camera in 2013's Fast & Furious 6. The previous entry did wonders in terms of taking things to the next level and this continues that trend. The post-credits stinger after Fast Five revealed that Letty was still alive and that became the heart of this film.

This entire plot centered on the core team working together to bring Letty back into the fold and fix her amnesia. It features the wild action you'd expect, while Luke Evans made for a compelling villain who would return later on. Once again, three stars was given out a lot (30%), with four stars not far behind (16%).

Furious 7 (2015) - 3.22

Stream On Peacock

Dom and Brian look at the Lykan Hypersport in Furious 7

Surprisingly, after everything Justin Lin did to rejuvenate the series, he wasn't at the helm of Furious 7. Instead, the honor went to Saw and Aquaman director James Wan. In fact, his work behind the camera for this 2015 film was arguably what helped him land Aquaman in the first place.

After Evans' Owen Shaw lost in the previous film, his brother Deckard vowed vengeance on the family and was the main villain here. Along with the absurd set pieces (like skydiving with cars or driving across several buildings), there was the emotion of this being Paul Walker's last appearance after his untimely death. 26% of users gave this three stars, 20% gave it three and a half, and 18% have it at four stars.

The Fast And The Furious (2001) - 3.23

Stream On Peacock

Dom and Brian look concerned after surviving a car crash in The Fast and the Furious

Sometimes it can be difficult to top the original. In 2001, The Fast and the Furious arrived and was a surprise hit at the box office. Watching this movie is interesting because it doesn't feel all that much like what the franchise went on to become as it's much smaller in scale.

Instead of saving the world, it's a story about stolen items and street racing. Despite that, it actually works well because of the relationship between the characters and it's held up by series fans. Three stars is often the rating given (30%), with a fair amount given this four stars as well (15%).

Fast Five (2011) - 3.41

Stream On Peacock

Hobbs shoots a machine gun in Fast Five

It's kind of fitting that this is the highest-scoring film of them all because of what it means for the franchise. In the eyes of many, 2011's Fast Five marked a huge change. This was when things really went from being small-time to becoming a series with incredibly high stakes.

This is basically a mock Ocean's Eleven, as it consists of a heist and brings together characters from the previous movies to work together. Plus, it also sees the debut of Dwayne Johnson's Luke Hobbs, who would become a staple going forward. Interestingly, this is the lone movie where the highest rating is a tie, as both three and four stars were given out 23% of the time each.

NEXT: Every Fast And Furious Movie Ranked (According To IMDb)