The Big Question The Fast & Furious Movies Have Never Answered

With the Fast & Furious movie series heading towards its two-part finale, the franchise has allowed one major question to go unanswered to date. Under Louis Letterier’s direction (taking over for the departing Justin Lin), the upcoming Fast X illuminates that the run of the Fast Saga has been as long as it has been unexpected. With the franchise’s reputation for constant elevation and evolution with each installment, the Fast & Furious series seems set to wrap up with one mystery tying back to Fast Five left unsolved.

In Fast Five, Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his crew execute a heist of millions of dollars from Brazilian crime boss Hernan Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida) in Rio de Janeiro. The follow-up Fast & Furious 6 saw them effectively graduate to mercenaries for the U.S. government when they’re recruited for a mission by DSS agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson). Dom and co. receive pardons from their criminal acts as compensation for the mission, but Fast & Furious 6 never answers the question of whether they were required to return the money they stole.

As the series continued to require an ever-greater suspension of disbelief, even leaping into space in F9, the subsequent movies in the Fast Saga show no more concern for answering this question than Fast & Furious 6 did. In fact, the Fast & Furious films emphasize the adventurous and idyllic nature of the lives of Dom’s family, with none of them ever shown working a traditional job. Without any apparent employment on the part of Dom or those closest to him, the Fast & Furious franchise seems to be hinting at all of them remaining millionaires.

One possible explanation could relate to the nature of the pardons themselves. Dom and co. appear to be working pro bono on every subsequent mission they’ve been called up for. Even in personal conflicts such as in Furious 7, missions for the U.S. government tend to be tacked on. This could suggest a condition of their pardons implemented by the crew’s one-time antagonist Hobbs permitting them to keep their stolen fortunes is for Dom and his crew to be on call for future missions at the option of either Hobbs, Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell), or other government agents.

Of course, the Fast Saga’s concern for logic has lessened with every subsequent release. This makes the Fast Saga’s evident disinterest in explaining the financial security of its heroes not altogether shocking. With adventures of increasing scope and bombast fast becoming a way of life for Dom and his family, reporting on their financial situations is clearly not among the Fast & Furious series’ mandates.

There might be a hidden story explanation for why Dom and the rest of the Fast Saga’s superhero-like characters being as wealthy as Batman without explanation. Ultimately, however, that answer probably lies in the nature of the franchise itself. If the Fast & Furious series does not need to answer whether Dom’s crew had to return their money, it’s safe to assume that, for whatever reason, they simply never had to.