The 'Fast & Furious' franchise launched in 2001 as a scrappy little action drama, starring Paul Walker and Vin Diesel, set against the backdrop of street racing culture. Throughout its increasingly plus-sized sequels, the notion of family — both by blood, and chosen — has always been championed, and positioned as integral.

The newly released trailer for ‘Fast X,' the penultimate release in the series, makes clear that, once again, the movie will present ample opportunities for a “family”-oriented drinking game, should one desire.

‘Fast X’ is slated to hit big screens on May 19 from Universal Films, with exhibitors surely hoping the movie can provide the similar type of long-lasting booster shot to theatrical exhibition that ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ did this past year, when it grossed $127 million in its opening weekend, en route to a $719 million domestic gross and $1.49 billion worldwide haul.

Vin Diesel and Daniela Melchior in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

(L to R) Vin Diesel and Daniela Melchior in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

‘Fast X’ Continues Franchise Trend of Showing Past Actions Having Unforeseen Consequences

The new film picks up where 2021’s ‘F9’ left off, with globe-trotting street racer Dominic Torretto (Diesel) and his crew reunited and happy. Tej (Chris “Ludacris” Bridges) and Roman (Tyrese Gibson) have returned to Earth from the International Space Station, and Dom and Mia (Jordana Brewster) have somewhat reconciled with their estranged brother Jakob (John Cena), allowing him to escape. The escape of cyberterrorist Cipher (Charlize Theron), though, represents a loose string.

In 2011’s ‘Fast Five,’ Dom and his crew took out a nefarious Brazilian drug kingpin, Hernan Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida), in a memorable sequence on a bridge in Rio De Janeiro. Little did Dom know, however, that Reyes’s son Dante (Jason Momoa) witnessed everything, and has spent the last dozen years carefully crafting a plan of revenge.

Against this backdrop, old enemies will resurface and new allies will be forged. Vowing to break and destroy Dom’s family “piece by piece,” Dante’s ultimate target is Dom’s eight-year-old son Brian (Leo Abelo Perry).

Jason Momoa is Dante in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

Jason Momoa is Dante in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

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Family Focus Means Some Faces Old, Some Faces New

Taking the directorial baton from Justin Lin is French filmmaker Louis Leterrier (‘Clash of the Titans,’ ‘Now You See Me’), who oversees a massive, continent-hopping production that includes stops in Rome, London, Los Angeles, Brazil and Antarctica.

Returning cast members Michelle Rodriguez, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, Jason Statham, Scott Eastwood, Helen Mirren and Michael Rooker join the aforementioned parties, along with new faces Rita Moreno, who plays Dom, Mia and Jakob’s grandmother, and Brie Larson, who portrays Tess, a rogue representative of a covert government agency who aligns herself with Dom’s crew.

Brie Larson is Tess in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

(Right) Brie Larson is Tess in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

Will ‘Fast X’ Feature a Liberty Mutual Insurance Tie-In?

The trailer includes no small amount of messianic posing, menacingly cryptic threats (“Never accept death, when suffering is owed”), wild fisticuffs, and, of course, the type of massive vehicular destruction that would have an extremely negative impact on one’s insurance rates. It also seems to promise at least one sequence tying back into the franchise’s original street-racing roots, with Dom and Dante squaring off in a public race the former says is “to stop a bloodbath.”

Will Dom be successful? Audiences only have three more months to wait and see.

Vin Diesel is Dom in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

Vin Diesel is Dom in 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

Vin Diesel and Director Louis Leterrier on the set of 'Fast X.'

(L to R) Vin Diesel and Director Louis Leterrier on the set of 'Fast X.'

A scene from 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

A scene from 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

A scene from 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

A scene from 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

A scene from 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

A scene from 'Fast X,' directed by Louis Leterrier.

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'Fast X' is produced by Neal H. Moritz, Vin Diesel, Justin Lin, Jeff Kirschenbaum and Samantha Vincent. The executive producers are Joseph M. Caracciolo, Jr., David Cain, Chris Morgan, Amanda Lewis and Mark Bomback.

Author: Brent Simon