Release, Cast, and Everything We Know So Far

After the events of Fast X left jaws on the floor for fans of Fast & Furious,all eyes are on the next chapter for Vin Diesel and his family. So, here is everything known so far.

The returns of Dwayne Johnson and Gal Gadot and a barrage of sudden cliffhangers have made Fast & Furious 11 (XI) a must-see for those who take their popcorn with a side of nitrous.

For a movie franchise that has been ongoing for over two decades, there seem to be no brakes on the road to the final chapter. All characters could return, and everyone in Hollywood is eligible to show up. Anything can happen.
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After announcing at this year’s CinemaCon that Fast 11 will be released in 2025, Vin Diesel narrowed it down via Instagram with a release date of April 4, 2025.

While there has been no official filming announcement for the film, Diesel said on that Instagram post that “part two is going to be an effort from our fast family and studio as you have never seen.” This heavy-lift film is going to have a huge cast with big sets and large-scale production. This release date is on the board, but nothing is set in stone.

Further concerns for that release date were flamed with the Writer’s Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Universal Pictures President Peter Cramer said in an interview with The Los Angeles Times, “If it lasts for too long, it’ll be hard to imagine that we can get this film up on the timeline we’d like to.”

Luckily, both of those strikes are over, meaning that Fast XI’s pre-production can commence.

Fast & Furious 11 Cast: Who Will Return?

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Few movie franchises can manufacture the cast of characters available in the Fast & Furious franchise. Based on where each character in Fast X left when the credits hit, here is who to expect for Fast & Furious 11:

Vin Diesel – Dominic Toretto
Michelle Rodriguez – Letty Ortiz
Jason Momoa – Dante Reyes
Dwayne Johnson – Luke Hobbs
Jason Statham – Deckard Shaw
Ludacris – Tej
Tyrese Gibson – Roman
Sung Kang – Han
Nathalie Emmanuel – Ramsey
Jordana Brewster – Mia Toretto
Charlize Theron – Cipher
Gal Gadot – Gisele
Alan Ritchson – Aimes
Daniela Melchior – Isabel
Leo Abelo Perry – Brian “Little B” Marcos
Helen Mirren – Queenie
Brie Larson – Miss Nobody
Scott Eastwood – Little Nobody
Kurt Russell – Mr. Nobody

One character that director Louis Leterrier singled out when speaking to Comicbook was Leo Abelo Perry’s Brian Marcos, who he jokingly hoped would “age slower” with Fast 11 taking longer to release:

With Leterrier hoping that Perry will stay looking young in the meantime, this seems to suggest that he will play a key role in the next Fast and Furious installment.

Will Paul Walker’s Brian O’Conner Return in Fast 11?

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For a movie franchise known for breaking the “did you see a body?” rule when bringing characters back from the dead, the biggest return question involves a character that has not died on screen.

Before diving into the potential of Brian O’Connor’s on-screen return to Fast & Furious, it needs to be said that Paul Walker’s death was a travesty for Hollywood, fans, and the Fast Family. Rest in peace, Paul Walker. Thank you for the memories.

Now, back to how Fast & Furious is handling the sudden death of Paul Walker because it is bananas.

Since one of the most emotional endings in blockbuster history watching Brian and Dom drive off in separate directions, Brian O’Connor/Paul Walker has made two posthumous “appearances” in the Fast & Furious franchise.

The first was an off-screen appearance as Brian’s signature blue Nissan pulls up to the family house in time to fill the empty seat at the table. The next was in Fast X but only in archival footage recapping the franchise.

The long and short of it: it is going to happen. Universal has already used a combination of CGI and Walker’s brothers (respectfully) to finish Furious 7.With the recent surge of artificial intelligence use of face and likeness, there seems to be no way Brian O’Connor does not make another appearance in this franchise.

Ethics for this situation are up in the air, and Paul Walker’s family would need to be 110% on board. It is worth noting that the relationship between Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and the rest of the Fast Family is one of the strongest in Hollywood lore (omitting one former World Wrestling Champion).

It is harder to believe that Vin would sign off on bringing Brian O’Connor back distastefully than it is that he is never coming back at all.

Will Dwayne Johnson Be in Fast 11?

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Ask anyone who walked out of Fast X, and they would have told you that Dwayne Johnson is back, and Hobbs will be a major player in Fast XI. With the way Fast X left off with the core family getting scenes cut in half in favor of a cliffhanger, there were three characters set to take the baton for Fast 11 before the eventual Fast 12.

The leader of that pack was Dwayne Johnson’s Luke Hobbs being threatened by Dante Reyes. All signs pointed to Fast 10 being the Vin Diesel movie, Fast 11 being the Dwayne Johnson movie, and Fast 12 being the Arnold Schwarzenegger/Carl Weathers gif from Predator.

Wrong.

Dwayne Johnson announced that Hobbs is back in the Fast Franchise, and shortly after it was announced that Hobbs would be making his feature-length return in another Fast spinoff. It was made clear via The Hollywood Reporter that this is not Fast XI or a sequel to Johnson’s previous spinoff, Hobbs & Shaw.

Writer Chris Morgan said “This is not a Hobbs & Shaw sequel — and it’s not ‘Fast 11.’ Think of it more like ‘Fast X.5.’”