The last person fans of the long-running Fast & Furious franchise expected to see in the upcoming Fast X was Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.
And yet that’s exactly show they’ll be seeing — as long as they stick around through the end credits.
The 51-year-old wrestler turned actor rejoins the series in a brief post-credits scene at the end of Fast X, The Wrap reported on Friday.
His return is particularly surprising, as it follows reports of a feud between himself and the film’s star, Vin Diesel.
Johnson even explicitly said he would never return to the series after Diesel made a public plea for him to come back into the fold in 2021.
He’s back! Dwayne Johnson is back in the Fast & Furious fold after making a surprise appearance in the upcoming Fast X, The Wrap reported on Friday; seen in March in Hollywood
Prodigal action star: Johnson is featured in an end-credits scene in Fast X, despite his years-long feud with star Vin Diesel
In November of that year, Diesel shared a grainy screenshot of himself and Johnson going at it from one of the earlier Fast & Furious movies.
In his caption, he patronizingly referred to Johnson as his ‘little brother,’ and said ‘the time has come.’
‘The world awaits the finale of Fast 10. As you know, my children refer to you as Uncle Dwayne in my house,’ he wrote. ‘There is not a holiday that goes by that they and you don’t send well wishes… but the time has come. Legacy awaits.
‘I told you years ago that I was going to fulfill my promise to Pablo,’ he continued, referring to his late costar Paul Walker. ‘I swore that we would reach and manifest the best Fast in the finale that is 10! I say this out of love… but you must show up, do not leave the franchise idle you have a very important role to play. Hobbs can’t be played by no other. I hope that you rise to the occasion and fulfill your destiny.’
Johnson last role in the main series was in 2017’s Fate Of The Furious, and in 2019 he starred with Jason Statham in the spinoff Hobbs & Shaw, which grossed less than expected compared to the main series.
Although a sequel was planned, it had stalled as of December of last year.
Shortly after Diesel made his impassioned plea on Instagram, Johnson gruffly shut him down while talking to CNN.
‘I told [Diesel] directly that I would not be returning to the franchise. I was firm yet cordial with my words and said that I would always be supportive of the cast and always root for the franchise to be successful, but that there was no chance I would return,’ he said.
The Jungle Cruise star sounded genuinely angry at the tone of Diesel’s post.
Groveling: They began feuding in 2016, but Diesel begged Johnson to return in November 2021, and mentioned the late Paul Walker to help make his case
No thanks: But Johnson sounded offended by the post and called it an act of ‘manipulation.’ He told CNN a month later that he was done with the series for good; still from Fast & Furious 6
‘Vin’s recent public post was an example of his manipulation,’ Johnson added. ‘I didn’t like that he brought up his children in the post, as well as Paul Walker’s death. Leave them out of it. We had spoken months ago about this and came to a clear understanding.’
It’s not known why Johnson suddenly changed his tune, but the failure of his superhero film Black Adam may have had something to do with it.
The movie grossed $393 million against a budget that may have been as much as $260 million. Analysts disagreed on whether the film ultimately lost money or made a small profit.
However, Johnson got the boot from DC due to the poor performance and co-CEO James Gunn’s decision to revamp the DCU with new stars.
He also appears to have ruffled people at Warner Bros. and DC Studios with his frequent demands.
He reportedly pushed to get a producer credit on DC League Of Super-Pets, but then used little of his Instagram clout to publicize the kids’ film.
And when Black Adam premiered, he pushed to have a tequila bar stocked with his personal label, despite the event being for a PG-13 film.
‘His demands increased and the returns just weren’t there,’ an Insider told Variety.
End of the road: Johnson may be back after his superhero film Black Adam failed to score a sequel; still from Fast Five
Diesel appeared to reveal at the Fast X premiere in Rome that the series’ finale will be stretched into a trilogy, rather than two films; still from Fast X
With his Black Adam folly behind him, the Fast & Furious saga might be his next best chance at a franchise.
There’s a good chance that he could be back for more films, as Vin Diesel revealed at the Fast X world premiere in Rome that executives wanted to draw out the series a bit longer.
It was initially set to end with the tenth film, which was then expanded into a two-part finale, but it may now be spread out over three films.
Vin claimed that executives had asked him, ‘”Could you make Fast X, the finale, a trilogy?”‘ according to Forbes.
