IN 2001, The Fast and the Furious became one of the highest-grossing movies of the year.
The film made $207million against a budget of $38million and propelled the likes of Vin Diesel and Paul Walker into superstardom.
It’s now about to become a 10-part franchise and has even recruited established stars such as Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham into the fold.
Actors such as Brie Larson, Jason Mamoa, and rap megastar Cardi B are all set to appear in the star-studded next instalment, Fast X.
This week, Brie, 33, shared a picture of herself with a huge arm tattoo, leading many fans to believe it’s a teaser from the film.
Before its release in May, we take a look at what happened to the stars of the original film 22 years later.
Vin Diesel – Dominic Toretto
Regarded as one of the biggest names ever in the action blockbuster genre, Vin Diesel – real name Mark Sinclair – has starred in all nine main Fast and Furious films and will be in the tenth instalment too.
He’s also starred in The Chronicles of Riddick, The Pacifier, The Last Witch Hunter and was the voice of fan favourite character Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy.
He doesn’t just act, however, having founded his own production company.
He previously dated co-star Michelle Rodriguez, and has three children with Paloma Jimenez, who he has been with since 2007.
Paul Walker – Brian O’Conner
Hollywood heartthrob Paul first started to gain recognition in teen films including She’s All That and The Skulls, but after starring in The Fast and the Furious as former cop Brian O’Conner his career really went into overdrive.
He went on to feature in several of the film’s sequels, as well as other action flicks including Takers and Hours.
Tragically the promising star died at the age of 40 in a car crash in 2013, leaving behind a 15-year-old daughter, Meadow.
The collision occurred when his friend Roger Rodas drove his Porsche Carrera GT into a concrete lamp post and a tree at 94mph before the car caught fire, killing them both.
In 2021 model Meadow, now 23, revealed she’d wed actor husband Louis Thornton-Allan, with her late dad’s co-star Vin Diesel – who is also her godfather – walking her down the aisle.
Michelle Rodriguez – Letty Ortiz
As well as briefly dating Vin Diesel in real life, Michelle played his character Dom’s love interest Letty Ortiz in the 2001 film and subsequent sequels.
Outside of the film franchise Michelle, now 44, has had a hugely successful and varied career, starring in the TV series Lost, the film Avatar and playing Rain Ocampo in the Resident Evil franchise.
Over the years she’s had a few brushes with the law.
In 2004 she appeared in court for driving offences including driving with a suspended licence and driving under the influence. She served five days in prison in 2006 for driving over the drinking limit in Hawaii.
In 2008 the star was sentenced to 180 days in a Los Angeles jail for violating her probation on previous drink-driving and hit-and-run offences – and lying about having completed her community service.
In 2014 she dated supermodel Cara Delevingne and has been linked to Zac Efron previously too.
Jordana Brewster – Mia Toretto
Jordana’s breakthrough role was as Mia, but she was destined for stardom from a young age and before that she had a one-time appearance in the soap All My Children, before landing a recurring role in As the World Turns.
She went on to win a part in films including The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, a role for which she was nominated for two Teen Choice Awards.
It was on set that she met her ex-husband film producer Andrew Form, who she wed in 2007 and went on to have two sons with before splitting in 2020.
In 2015, Brewster showed off her stunning figure as she posed nude for the May issue of Allure magazine.
Jordana met her husband Mason Morfit through mutual friends in 2020, got engaged a year later on their favourite beach in Montecito and wed in September 2022.
Rick Yune – Johnny Tran
Rick Yune was the menacing Vietnamese gang leader and the franchise’s first big villain.
The 51-year-old actor is known for playing the bad guy in a number of movies including 2013’s Olympus Has Fallen alongside Gerald Butler and Angela Basset.
Before that, Rick, who has Korean ancestry, got his big break in 1999 as Kabuo Miyamoto in Snow Falling on Cedars.
In 2017, he had a recurring role as Ja in the 2017 revival of the hit show Prison Break.
In 2011, he was sued by a husband and wife duo from London who said they had a deal with the actor to buy 10 Hermes bags.
According to TMZ, the couple said they handed over $198k for 8 bags with the promise to pay another $95k for two additional bags upon delivery, but never got the bags or a refund.
Rick denied the claims, with a representative at the time saying: “It’s a shame someone is trying to tarnish his name and he has fallen victim to a scam.”
Chad Lindberg – Jesse
Chad Lindberg, 46, had been acting since 1985 before he signed on to play Jesse in The Fast and the Furious.
Since then, he’s had a number of movie and TV credits including October Sky, Sons of Anarchy, and Supernatural.
In 2010, he gained widespread attention when he starred in the graphic remake of the 1978 cult classic I Spit on Your Grave.
Over the years, Chad has kept his private life under wraps – he was known to be dating Selena Fara but their status is currently unknown.
Ted Levine – Sgt Tanner
Ted, 65, was Sergeant Tanner in the film and has since had roles in blockbusters such as American Gangster, Shutter Island, and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.
In 2014, it was revealed by TMZ that he was embroiled in a legal battle with his family who accused him of being a “sadistic and cruel bully”.
His brothers and sister alleged that he forced them to auction off their family’s BBQ restaurant for a fraction of its actual value and left them in financial ruin.
He is still active in Hollywood and most recently played Horst Kleinsasser in the crime drama Big Sky.
Source: thesun.co.uk
