Vin Diesel on Sunday asked Dwayne Johnson to bury the hatchet and come back to the Fast and Furious franchise. The two megastars called it quits in 2016 while on the set of The Fate of the Furious. While the details of their falling out are not crystal clear, many have pointed to a 2016 Instagram post made by Johnson in which he appeared to question the professionalism of his Fast & Furious male co-stars.
“My female co-stars are always amazing and I love ’em. My male co-stars however are a different story,” said Johnson, in what was viewed as an inflammatory post.
“My little brother Dwayne… the time has come,” Diesel began on an Instagram post. “The world awaits the finale of Fast 10. As you know, my children refer to you as Uncle Dwayne in my house. There is not a holiday that goes by that they and you don’t send well wishes… but the time has come. Legacy awaits.”
Diesel continues, “I told you years ago that I was going to fulfill my promise to [Paul Walker]. I swore that we would reach and manifest the best Fast in the finale that is 10! I say this out of love… but you must show up, do not leave the franchise idle you have a very important role to play. Hobbs can’t be played by no other. I hope that you rise to the occasion and fulfill your destiny.”
Diesel’s plea for Johnson to come back to the Fast and Furious franchise for its grand finale comes not long after Johnson told Vanity Fair that he regrets the way he’d handled himself with regards to the infamous Instagram post.
In talking more about the “post heard around the world,” Johnson now admits that it “just wasn’t my best day” after hitting send on the agitational Instagram entry. “I meant what I said. For sure. I mean what I say when I say it,” Johnson confirmed. “But to express it publicly was not the right thing to do.”
“It caused a firestorm,” he added. “Yet interestingly enough…[it was] as if every single crew member found their way to me and either quietly thanked me or sent me a note. But, yeah, it wasn’t my best day, sharing that. I shouldn’t have shared that. Because at the end of the day, that goes against my DNA. I don’t share things like that. And I take care of that kind of bullshit away from the public. They don’t need to know that. That’s why I say it wasn’t my best day.”
While continuing to speak with Vanity Fair, Johnson also clarified that a reported meeting between the two on set in Johnson’s trailer wasn’t exactly “peaceful.” Johnson says that this is when he realized that he and Diesel are “philosophically two different people and we approach the business of moviemaking in two very different ways.”
“Well, there was a meeting,” Johnson confirmed. “I wouldn’t call it a peaceful meeting. I would call it a meeting of clarity. He and I had a good chat in my trailer, and it was out of that chat that it really became just crystal clear that we are two separate ends of the spectrum. And agreed to leave it there.”
“One part of me feels like there’s no way I would dignify any of that bullshit with an answer,” said Johnson while referring to comments Diesel made to Men’s Health about Johnson not giving the Fast franchise his all. Diesel “came up differently and was raised differently,” added Johnson. “I go into every project giving it my all.”
“It’s the philosophy of going into work every day. Looking at everybody as equal partners. And looking at the studio as equal partners. And looking at the crew, regardless of where you’re at, either on the call sheet or otherwise, as equal partners — with respect and with humility, and being respectful of the process and every other human being who is putting in just as much time, just as much hard work and sweat equity, if not more,” he said.
What do you think will happen now that Diesel has extended an olive branch to Johnson? Will Johnson accept Diesel’s offer and come back to finish out the blockbuster action series? Fans have wanted both stars to make amends for years, and this feels like the closest we’ve ever come to making that happen. Johnson has yet to respond to the offer, but I suspect that he’ll issue a statement sooner rather than later.