‘None of Us Knew What We Had’: Jordana Brewster Looks Back at 25 Years of ‘The Fast and the Furious’
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- Jordana Brewster was a Yale sophomore auditioning for a Universal film called 'Redline' when director Rob Cohen cast her as Mia Toretto in what became 'The Fast and the Furious,' despite reservations that she had a 'patrician air.'
- Rob Cohen sent Brewster to a Las Vegas racing boot camp and had her study Anna Magnani films, with Brewster crediting his 'collaborative' approach and casting instincts alongside Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and Michelle Rodriguez for making the 2001 film work.
- The on-screen romance between Brewster and Paul Walker evolved into a deeper off-screen friendship that lasted until Walker's 2013 car crash death; Brewster calls the chemistry 'an ease with Paul' and says it is 'tragic that he hasn't been with us for 13 years now.'
- Justin Lin took over the franchise starting with the fourth film — the one that brought Brewster back after she was excluded from '2 Fast 2 Furious' — and directed through 'Fast X,' a tenure Brewster credits with turning the series into a worldwide phenomenon.
- The original 'Fast and the Furious' returns to theaters for a week-long 25th-anniversary engagement starting August 21, following a Cannes Film Festival screening Brewster attended that positioned the 2001 film as a 'classic.'
- Brewster says the eleventh film remains in pre-production with hopes to begin shooting early next year, calling the franchise's longevity — and being recognized as a childhood crush by a 20-year-old fan — 'a wonderful thing to have as my legacy.'
Why it matters: Universal's week-long August 21 re-release and the Cannes 'classic' screening mark the franchise's improbable canonization: a modest street-racing B-movie is now treated on the same festival stage as auteur works. Brewster hopes to begin shooting the eleventh film early next year, anchoring her as one of the few original cast members still tied to a 25-year-old franchise.
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