“Family”, the famous quote exclaimed by Vin Diesel a hilarious amount of times, is the heart of this utterly bombastic franchise. The main reason audiences love these movies so much is for their cool cars, as well as the many over-the-top and simply unbelievable moments, with Universal even wanting a crossover with Jurassic World. Yet, what elevates this highly-successful franchise are its memorable and somewhat relatable characters that Fast and Furious fans have sat with for more than two decades.
For 20 years, fans have connected with street racers, undercover cops, bounty hunters, ex-British special forces, and cyborgs (yes, really). Some of these characters are so beloved that many have been miraculously brought back from the dead. So with “Family” being the forefront of the franchise, here are the best characters in this high-octane soap opera.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
8 Tej Parker
Universal Pictures
Starting off the franchise as a mechanic and race referee before joining Dom’s crew, Tej eventually acquires some very impressive hacking skills. How did Tej acquire this skill? That is unknown, but if you find yourself asking questions at any point in this franchise, this is the wrong franchise for you. Tej provides the team with all the tech support they may need, as well as on occasion, sitting behind the wheel to prove his similarly impressive driving skills. It’s very rare for Tej to get into a fight, but when he does, Tej can most definitely handle himself. As impressive and as diverse Tej’s skills are, Tej’s character is elevated by his hilarious banter with Roman Pearce.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
7 Deckard Shaw
Ex-British Special Forces Deckard Shaw started his time in the franchise as a ruthless and efficient villain, seeking revenge for his brother, Owen. Within the first minutes of the film, audiences got to witness how truly capable Deckard is, as he walks through the remains of the hospital he just demolished. While he is a terrifying villain and deadly adversary to Dom and his crew, we couldn’t help but immediately fall in love with this insanely cool character, played by the venerable Jason Statham, who provided the perfect amount of bravado and physicality to the role. Fans loved Deckard so much, that Fast and Furious gave him the Loki treatment, eventually turning him into a hero, as well as giving him his own spinoff.
6 Gisele Yashar
Played by Gal Gadot, Giselle was a character fans instantly fell in love with, long before she even joined Dom’s crew, yet, when she joined his crew, her character was allowed to shine. Proving her skills as an incredibly comparable fighter and soldier, who was once a Mossad Operative, her selflessness and romantic moments with Han helped elevate Giselle into the character we know and love today. Her sacrifice for Han is still as gut-wrenching as ever, but like Han, hopefully we can see her character return in the upcoming Fast X.
5 Letty Ortiz
Arguably, Letty has had one of the best arcs in the series, being Dom’s childhood sweetheart who eventually went on to marry him in adulthood, and later led to her death when posing undercover in Braga’s crew. We thought we saw the last of her until her return in Fast Six as part of Owen Shaw’s group, and her memory was completely wiped. She quickly recovers her memory and then immediately rejoins Dom’s crew. Aside from this, Letty is an incredibly cool character, proving herself to the cause in many thrilling hand-to-hand fights, as well as showing audiences her skills as a veteran street racer. Similarly, she can also speak both Spanish and Japanese fluently, which has helped the team on numerous occasions.
4 Dominic Toretto
Dom is the heart and soul of the franchise, constantly spewing out “Family” as much as he can, as well as being an absolutely ruthless beast. Dom has lifted a 300-pound Lykan Hypersort, went toe-to-toe with the Rock and Jason Statham, and has managed to somehow survive impossible odds. It’s safe to say that Dominic Toretto is a tank, who has had to deal with grief many times, after losing the love of his life, Letty, the mother of his child, Elena, and of course, his best friend, Brian O’Connor. With all that loss, Dom has still managed to put others first and cement himself as a loyal, deadly, and compelling character. We also don’t need to talk about his driving skills, because that speaks for itself.
3 Han Seoul-Oh
The second that Han appeared on-screen, fans couldn’t get enough of him, proving his very impressive driving skills that rival those of both Dom and Brian; his romantic relationship with Giselle, and the fact that he is always eating, makes us love him even more. After the tragic death of Giselle, Han sadly left Dom’s crew to move back home to Tokyo to become a thief and a street racer. This eventually led to his supposed death, which quickly got ret-conned, and he was brought back by Mr Nobody for a special mission and to rejoin Dom’s crew. Han’s bravery and driving skills are admired and make Han one of the best characters in the franchise.
2 Luke Hobbs
Former DSS agent Luke Hobbs is without a doubt the coolest and most badass character in the whole franchise. His introduction skyrocketed the franchise to success, both critically and commercially, and his absence from Fast 9 was sorely missed. Hobbs is known for spouting out some of the best and most memorable lines in the franchise, from “Woman, I am the cavalry” to “I’m gonna beat your a** like a Cherokee drum”. Likewise, his back-and-forths with Deckard Shaw are hilarious, which led to a brilliant spin-off, directed by the great David Leitch. Hobbs may not come with a lot of heart, but his bravado, bravery, and awesome one-liners pave the way for a character we always want to see more of.
1 Brian O’Connor
Brian O’Connor is as synonymous with the franchise as Dominic Toretto, allowing for a great character arc that made audiences fall head-over-heels for him. The former FBI agent sent to infiltrate Dom’s crew, leaves his law enforcement life behind when falling in love with Dom’s sister, Mia, which leads Brian in joining Dom’s crew for good. Brian is one of the most charming characters in the franchise, that helped win fans and Dom’s crew over. Likewise, due to his law enforcement past, Brian comes with a very particular set of skills that are put to the test many times. As far as drivers go, Brian may be the best in the franchise, at least tying with Dom. Although not in the franchise anymore after the tragic and sudden death of actor Paul Walker, his legacy lives on and Furious 7 provided audiences, the cast, and the film’s characters, with a perfectly emotional tribute, that always leaves us in an emotional mess.
