Dwayne Johnson's big Fast & Furious return is nonsense

Warning, spoilers: Dwayne Johnson is returning in Fast & Furious 10. However, after that, he won't be seen in the action franchise anymore. Henry Cavill has proven that. The cars are the most boring aspect of the Fast & Furious series. Behind the scenes, so much drama happens that Vin Diesel's action saga has now become a mixture of Succession and Jersey Shore. The latest revelation? Dwayne Johnson's Hobbs returns to the franchise's embrace. The post-credit scene in part 10 suggests an important role in Fast & Furious 11. I say, forget it. Just like with Henry Cavill as Superman, there won't be a big return. Dwayne Johnson desperately needed the post-credit scene in Fast & Furious 10 For those who don't understand the significance of the post-credit scene in Fast & Furious 10, here's the most important observation: The Rock comes crawling back to Diesel, whining. Like a trained dog obediently delivering his rehearsed slogan and turning his face towards the camera for affectionate strokes. And this comes after one of the most exciting, funniest, and most childish Hollywood feuds in a long time. The Johnson-Diesel dispute goes back to Fast & Furious 8. Diesel compared himself to the Italian master director Federico Fellini (8½), while Johnson called him an idiot. In the end, it all sounded very final. Why is The Rock returning now? What happened? In two words: Black Adam. The extremely expensive, over 10-year-planned superhero blockbuster was supposed to make Johnson both an innovator and the main hero of a new DC era. It was a move that would have secured his retirement. On par with Superman in a billion-dollar franchise that would make Fast & Furious look like Hot Wheels. Dwayne Johnson in Black Adam Photo in full size Warner Dwayne Johnson in Black Adam But the film was bad, everyone knew it, and in the end, even Johnson couldn't sugarcoat the disaster anymore. For the first time in years, he had to endure a truly ugly flop, and it happened with a prestigious project. It was time for humility, money and dignity were at stake, and suddenly arch-enemy Vin Diesel didn't seem so antagonistic anymore. Dwayne Johnson's Fast & Furious scene is as irrelevant as Henry Cavill's DC return Hence, the post-credit scene in Fast 10. But despite that, I still don't believe in a second Johnson phase of the franchise. This also has to do with Black Adam. Henry Cavill returned as Superman after years, only to be cut off by DC shortly afterward. It will be similar with Dwayne Johnson.

Not that Vin Diesel will simply maliciously throw Johnson out of the franchise after the post-credit shoot. He is too fixated on building a Fast & Furious family, even if the individual members don't reciprocate his intrusive affection. Dwayne Johnson will never subordinate himself to Vin Diesel again No, the reason is rather that Johnson and Diesel cannot coexist side by side. Both have been accustomed for a long time to setting the tone in front of and behind the camera in their films. Both almost always produce their films themselves and are considered autocrats on set. Dwayne Johnson even unilaterally changed the ending of his monster action film "Rampage," demonstrating his autonomy. Vin Diesel is no better. Even franchise veteran Justin Lin, who is seasoned in handling such egos, couldn't bear it anymore. He resigned from the director's position for Fast & Furious 10. And Dwayne Johnson is no Justin Lin. The billion-dollar Hollywood star, who once referred to himself as "franchise Viagra" for Fast & Furious (via YouTube) and was the highest-paid actor in the world in 2020 (via Forbes), will not subject himself to an ego rival whom he clearly dislikes. That is the real reason for Dwayne Johnson's quick Fast return The post-credit scene simply serves to keep him in the conversation. According to IMDb, Dwayne Johnson currently has seven films planned, all of them blockbusters. They will bombard audiences with Rock content through streaming and cinema screens until the bitter taste of Black Adam is erased from their memory. When the first Fast & Furious 11 trailer reveals the deception of the Fast 10 post-credits, nobody will care anymore. Dwayne Johnson didn't celebrate his brief Fast 10 appearance, as he has done so often on social media before. It only proves how embarrassing the whole situation is for him. But apart from that, there was surprisingly little excitement about the big revelation. Could it be that some fans were relieved when Black Adam burst the ever-growing Rock bubble of megalomania? Such fatigue can only be cured by restraint. A quality that the star does not possess, despite all his humility.