Warning: Major Spoilers For Fast X Below!Fast X ended on a major cliffhanger that proves frustrating on many levels. Fast X is proving to be one of the more divisive outings in the franchise and could be evidence it’s losing its sheen with viewers. While Jason Momoa received positive notices for his delightfully hammy turn as the saga’s latest villain, Fast X felt overstuffed with characters and subplots. Some of these storylines ultimately felt superfluous too, and even Fast X’s many action sequences lacked the wow factor of previous entries.
From the beginning, star Vin Diesel set up Fast X as being the beginning of the end for the main series. The eleventh film was originally set to close out the main Fast And Furious movie franchise, but Diesel later suggested there could be two more movies. Whatever the case might be, Fast X ends on a cliffhanger that feels less like an organic note to close on than one designed to make audiences come back for the next entry. For that reason, Fast X’s ending cliffhanger is needlessly frustrating.
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10 Dom & Little B Won’t Die After Fast X’s Cliffhanger
Fast X ends with Dom (Diesel) driving himself and his son “Little B” (Abelo Perry) down the side of a dam to avoid an explosive trap. Despite some impressive driving, it’s revealed that Momoa’s Dante has booby-trapped the dam with further bombs, and Fast X cuts to black as it’s about to explode. Of course, there’s zero doubt in viewers’ minds that Dom and Little B will get out of this seemingly inescapable jam, which saps this scene of any intended suspense. Had it been another key character in Dom’s place such as Mia (Jordana Brewster), maybe this ending would work, but as it stands, the outcome is already decided.
9 Fast X’s Cliffhanger Leaves Major Character Fates In Question
Fast X’s ending sees Dante get the better of everybody and leaves the fates of many characters in the air. Specifically, a plane carrying Roman (Tyrese Gibson), Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel), Tej (Ludacris) and Han (Sung Kang) is shot down and explodes, leaving their fates unknown. It’s doubtful they were all killed, though if the Fast And Furious series wants to re-establish some stakes, at least one of them should have died or been left seriously wounded. Fast X also leaves a lot of loose threads, including what happens next with Shaw (Jason Statham) as he races to save his mother Queenie (Helen Mirren) from an impending attack by Dante’s men.
8 Fast X’s Cliffhanger Will Take Years To Resolve
Ideally, Fast X’s cliffhanger would have been resolved by the release of the next entry the following year. Instead, Fast XI isn’t due to hit screens until 2025, and since it hasn’t begun filming, there’s always a chance that could be delayed further. It’s a risky move to end on such an inconclusive note, and Fast X’s disappointing box office suggests that audience investment in Dom and friends might not be as strong as it once was.
7 Fast X Doesn’t Have A Real Ending, Just Sequel Setup
More than anything, the issue with Fast X’s climax is that it doesn’t have an ending at all. It closes on a calculated note designed to establish further sequels and spinoffs. It’s entirely possible for a movie to end on a cliffhanger while still giving audiences a satisfying ending. The Empire Strikes Back and Kill Bill Vol. 1 are perfect examples of cliffhangers that set up another story while still giving audiences a strong conclusion. Fast X’s finale, on the other hand, feels cynical by comparison.
6 The Rock’s Fast & Furious Return Delays Fast X’s Resolution
One big shocker of the sequel – or at least it would have been, had it not been spoiled before release – was the return of Dwayne Johnson’s Hobbs in a Fast X post-credits scene. Johnson and Diesel had been feuding for years following filming on The Fate of the Furious, with Johnson once stating he would never return to the main series. Considering Hobbs was the one to actually kill Dante’s father in Fast Five, his absence would have felt odd, but in the aforementioned scene, he’s shown being threatened by Dante over the phone.
This not only sets up his return for Fast XI, but a solo Hobbs movie has also been confirmed. Currently, that Hobbs movie is set to act as a bridge between Fast X and XI, which either means it will need to hurry into production for a 2024 release, or it will cause Fast XI to get pushed back. If the Hobbs movie must take precedence, maybe it should just resolve Fast X’s ending too.
5 Wait, Is Jakob Actually Dead?
One of Fast X’s stranger subplots involved John Cena’s Jakob taking Little B on a wacky road trip to protect him. The former F9 villain has redeemed himself in the eyes of the family, making it appear Cena would become a recurring figure. However, toward the end of Fast X, he plows his cannon car into incoming enemy vehicles to allow Dom to save his son. It’s a shocking moment, and given the scale of the explosion, it feels impossible Jakob could have survived. That said, the franchise has effectively rendered the concept of death meaningless, so maybe he’ll show up next time with a band-aid over one eye.
4 Fast X’s Lack Of Explanation For Gisele’s Resurrection
Another big Fast X shocker was the reveal that Gal Gadot’s Gisele is very much alive, having been presumed dead following Fast & Furious 6. Gadot appears in a mute cameo at the very end of Fast X, arriving in Antarctica in a submarine to pick up Cipher (Charlize Theron) and Letty (Michelle Rodriguez). The movie offers no explanation whatsoever for how Gisele is alive, or why she would be working with Cipher, a longtime foe of Dom and his fast family. Naturally, this is another loose thread left for a future outing to pick up.
3 Fast X Still Didn’t Reveal Why Mr Nobody’s Disappeared
Kurt Russell’s Mr. Nobody made his debut in Furious 7 and appeared in the next two entries as the head of the mysterious Agency. Dom’s crew worked missions for Nobody, who disappeared following a plane crash in F9. While Fast X introduced his daughter Tess (Brie Larson), the movie is coy about where Mr Nobody himself has vanished to. It would be an anti-climax if Fast XI revealed he simply died offscreen, so his return feels inevitable. Perhaps his absence is down to a lack of interest from Russell in continuing the role, but again, this is another mystery Fast X could have resolved.
2 Is Cipher Still A Villain?
The Fast And Furious movies have a long, proud tradition of giving villains like Shaw or Jakob redemption for their past misdeeds. Fast X sees Cipher looking to Dom for help after Dante’s violent takeover of her team, and she and Letty later help each other escape from an Agency Black Site. While she’s acting partly out of self-interest, the sequel suggests Cipher’s redemption arc is being established, especially if Gisele is now part of her crew. She and Dom’s gang will no doubt team up to take down Dante, but the question of if she’s turned to the side of good remains unanswered.
1 Is Justice For Han Over Already?
The Fast And Furious timeline is famously knotted, with the events of the fourth, fifth and sixth outings taking place before the third movie, Tokyo Drift. This was to keep Han a part of the story, with the sixth entry revealing it was actually Shaw who killed him. The backlash to the demise of a beloved supporting character, and Shaw seemingly being forgiven by the crew for it, led to the “Justice For Han” campaign. Hence, the character was resurrected for F9, which revealed Nr Nobody helped fake his death.
F9’s post-credit scene brought Han face to face with Shaw since the latter “killed” him, but while the two briefly spar, they work together when the Agency attacks. Considering the fact Nobody used Shaw to make Han’s death look convincing, it appears Fast X has essentially resolved the Justice For Han narrative in a not terribly exciting way. Maybe the real “Justice” will be when he and Gisele are reunited in Fast XI, but his epic showdown with Shaw was anything but.
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