To my delight, Fast X is one of the best and most fun movies so far in 2023. After 2021’s F9 proved to be enjoyable enough in spite of itself, it’s refreshing to see the action franchise right the ship. It’s even more important to the series’ legacy, as Fast X has long been billed as the beginning of the end. The original plan had been for the eleventh installment in the mainline series to be the finale. But now with Vin Diesel’s comments on the red carpet at the world premiere, it sure sounds like it’s a final trilogy.
But either way, with the end in sight, fans are already speculating on what might happen to our favorite furious family when it’s all said and done. With the upcoming Fast 11 (still to be officially titled) not only a direct sequel, but a part two to Fast X, audiences will no doubt be waiting in anticipation for a post credit scene for any hints at what might be coming.
Also read: Fast X Review: Non-Stop Thrill Ride Is The Best In The Franchise
Obvious spoiler warning for Fast X and its mid-credits scene. Continue reading at your own risk.
Fast X has just one additional scene once the credits start to roll and it comes pretty early on. While there’s no confirmation, the setting looks very similar to the police-station-turned-Dante’s-lair in Rio de Janeiro where Dom was ultimately arrested by Aimes. We see an unidentified special ops team enter, and one of the members, fully masked, picks up a phone. An audio clip starts to play, with Dante narrating a very similar story to the one that started his quest for revenge against Dom.
We hear the words “You pulled the trigger” and we see a flashback to Fast Five, to Hernan Reyes’ death. We don’t see the face of the man who pulls the trigger, but at this point fans know who’s under the mask. The camera pans to his face, he removes his mask. Luke Hobbs! That’s right, Dwayne Johnson is back!
Also Read: Fast and Furious Franchise Ranked – Where Does Fast X Land?
After appearing in Fast Five through The Fate of the Furious, plus the Hobbs & Shaw spinoff, Johnson left the franchise amidst a feud with Diesel that became quite public. In November of 2021, Diesel posted to Instagram, pleading for Johnson to return. Nothing came from it, publicly at least, and it appeared as though the franchise would continue without Hobbs. But lo and behold, look at us now. As of this writing, nothing has been officially confirmed about what happened behind the scenes to change his mind. We won’t spend any time here speculating on that, so that leaves one question to address: What does this mean for the series as it approaches the finish line?
Well, the short – and unfortunately boring – answer is we don’t know. The scene is short and simple, and reveals next to nothing outside of Hobbs’ return. I think it’s a safe assumption that the scene took place in Rio, so that at least answers the “where.” The “who” has already been answered. The big question left on the table is “when?” There’s nothing in the scene indicating when this scene takes place in relation to the events of Fast X. And I believe that was intentional.
With Fast 11 not yet in production, that gives the studio and the creative team the most flexibility with inserting Hobbs back into the story. I think the least likely scenario is Dante was targeting both Hobbs and the Toretto crew simultaneously. Could there be some overlap? Sure. Maybe Dante saw his endgame with Dom coming to a close so he started his plans with Hobbs. Beyond that, though, who knows.
The series has explained more confusing events than this (Han’s “death,” Tokyo Drift actually taking place after Fast & Furious 6, plus Fast X’s surprise reveal that Gisele somehow survived Fast & Furious 6). So I’m excited to see how they loop Hobbs back in and tie his story with Dante into the Fast X timeline. But however they decide to explain it, I’m just excited to have Hobbs back in the fold, and I’d guess most fans feel the same.
What do you think? Do you have any theories about how the series will bring Hobbs back into the fold? Let us know in the comments!
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