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Counting Hobbs and Shaw, there are 11 Fast and Furious movies split over two decades. The franchise has come a long way from its street-racing heyday, with gravity being broken, never-ending runways being ripped up, and several of the Fast Family turning from hero to villain, and back again.
With such a giant shift in tone, there's fierce competition for the best Fast and Furious movie. Some may prefer its humbler beginnings, while others may appreciate the bombast and overall silliness of the likes of Fast 10 far more. We've tried to account for all tastes, ranking them all below from worst to first.
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11. Fast and Furious (the fourth one)
After making a small cameo at the end of Tokyo Drift, Fast and Furious, the fourth movie in the franchise, saw Vin Diesel finally return as a main character in a Fast movie. Paul Walker, who had led 2 Fast 2 Furious, rejoined the Family, as did Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster.
Brian (Walker) is now working for the FBI and Dom (Diesel) has come out of hiding to find the person who killed Letty (Rodríguez). This brings the duo together once more as they deal with a drug baron who uses drag racers to deliver his drugs from Mexico across the U.S. border.
Putting aside the fact that Letty is fridged, there’s something about the performances in Fast and Furious that doesn’t quite connect. Plus, the drug lord narrative plays too similar to what we saw in 2 Fast 2 Furious, making this film feel less of a fresh reboot and more a retread of old tarmac. Still, those cave racing scenes are pretty nail-biting.
10. 2 Fast 2 Furious
The only main-series Fast and Furious movie that does not feature Diesel, the first sequel follows Brian, who is hiding out in Florida after getting in trouble for letting Dom getaway at the end of the first film. Earning money as a street racer to keep himself afloat, Brian’s approached by his former boss to help take down an Argentinian drug baron alongside Eva Mendes’ undercover agent and his old pal Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson).
The best thing about this movie is the introduction of much-needed humour through Gibson's Roman and Ludacris’s Tej. 2 Fast 2 Furious ends up as essentially an origins story for the duo, who would later become series' stalwarts. However, though there are some cool car races and chases, the storyline isn’t quite as compelling without Dom, Letty, or Mia to play against.
9. Fast and Furious 6
Fast 6 continues the good work from the previous film but this time sees Toretto and Hobbs working together, begrudgingly, to stop Luke Evan’s Owen Shaw from stealing a government chip. The movie also brings Letty back into the fold after she turns up alive with amnesia, and Rodriguez is on top form, both behind the wheel and bare-knuckle fighting with Gina Carano. Meanwhile, Gal Gadot shows just why she was cast as Wonder Woman as former Mossad agent Gisele, who debuted in the fourth movie.
Moving into spy territory, Fast and Furious 6 has more of a Mission: Impossible feel. So, why so low down? Owen Shaw doesn't prove as good a villain as his brother would later on, and there are some very fluffy scenes during the middle of the movie that are borderline unbearable – remember that unending scene by Battersea Power Station? – and the finale can't top Fast Five's safe race.
8. The Fate of the Furious
The first movie without Walker, following his untimely death in a car accident, really pushed the ridiculousness up to 11. The story takes off when the crew are forced to go up against their old friend, Dom, who has been coerced into working for cyberterrorist Cipher (Charlize Theron). They get help from Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and, of all people, Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), whose latter fight sequence is huge amounts of fun and screams Hardboiled.
Sadly with a push towards even more outlandish set-pieces, including a race across ice against a submarine, becomes too absurd and, without Walker, it loses much of the emotional heart that keeps the story flowing.
7. Hobbs and Shaw
This spin-off may not feature any of the original cast but it still packs a punch thanks to the unfriendly buddy match-up of Johnson’s Hobbs and Statham’s Shaw. Feeling more like a superhero movie and serving up less earnestness than the main franchise films, the two eponymous frenemies are forced to team up to stop Idris Elba’s superpowered bad guy Brixton, who wants to get his hands on a deadly virus. When Shaw’s sister (played by Vanessa Kirby) is accused of being a traitor, the three must team up to clear her name and stop the bad guys.
Thanks to some special additions to the cast, this is one of the funniest installments in the series yet. The movie doesn’t skimp on the car chases or choreographed fight sequences, either, and even has The Rock doing his best Captain America impression. Yet, despite electrifying camaraderie at its center, it can never quite hit the heights of the some of the main Fast Saga movies.
6. F9
After a long, long delay, Dom and the Family returned for another show-stopping adventure that literally takes them to space. The gang literally joke about their immortality during this one, making for some interesting fourth-wall breaking, while the movie pays loving tribute to Paul Walker.
Returning director Justin Lin gets the series back on track with Fast and Furious 9 by delving into the past while racing into the future. However, the much-hyped return of Han Seoul-Oh... while more Sung Kang is always welcome, his return is dispiritingly underpowered. And there's still not quite as much heart as in previous movies, but there's still plenty to enjoy in F9.
5. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
While Lucas Black might not have been the most captivating lead, director Justin Lin and writer Chris Morgan’s Fast and Furious debut was a refreshing addition and introduced one of the most popular characters of the franchise: Han.
The film follows American teen racer Sean (Black) who, after getting into trouble for causing serious damage during a drag race against a rich kid, is sent to stay with his father in Japan. There, he gets caught up in the drifting racing scene. Trouble with the local Yakuza gang ensues. The slick race sequences and cultural details make up for the mundane plot, but Sung Kang’s cool performance as our ill-fated Han gives it some much-needed edge and shows just why they wrote the sequels as prequels – all so they could bring him back.
4. Fast 10
This should've been an unmitigated disaster. After the lukewarm offerings of F9 and The Fate of the Furious, it felt like the series needed to go big or go home with its self-proclaimed 'end of the road.' What we got, instead, was director Justin Lin departing just weeks into film.
Yet, somehow, it all came together. The Transporter director Louis Leterrier took the wheel, delivering a manic thrill ride that saw Jason Momoa's Dante (son of Fast Five villain Hernan Reyes) on the warpath and attempting to make Dom suffer for his sins.
While the third act is, admittedly, slightly flat, it sets up a genuine cliffhanger that feels like a rare bold creative choice in the world of billion-dollar franchises. It helps, too, that it's all preceded by what feels like a greatest hits compilation of Fast's latter-day brilliance, all anchored by Momoa's magnetic villainous turn.
3. Fast Five
Following a disappointing return of the main characters in Fast and Furious, Fast Five reinvigorated the franchise, thanks namely to the introduction of Johnson’s Luke Hobbs and a push away from street racing and more towards having a heist movie storyline. Of course, there are still car chases, but there’s certainly an Italian Job sensibility mixed with brilliant action and fight sequences.
The story sees Dom, Brian, and Mia enlist some old friends to help steal from a corrupt Brazilian businessman, all while being pursued by D.S.S. agent Hobbs. It's basically the Avengers of the Fast universe, with everyone back for One Last Ride. More levity and better writing raise the stakes for this film, which elevated the franchise to new heights and still stands as a singularly great action movie.
2. The Fast and the Furious
It might show its age in comparison to later instalments, but The Fast and the Furious is still the OG and should be respected as such. Point Break meets drag racing, the movie sees Walker play the undercover cop Brian, who gets pally with local mechanic and racer Dominic Torretto, the leader of a burglary team who steal from trucks while driving black Honda Civics.
Directed by Rob Cohen and written by Gary Scott Thompson and David Ayer, the first movie in the franchise is a solid B-movie with blockbuster action sequences that elevate a somewhat dated script. Walker, Diesel, Rodrguez, and Brewster establish a brilliant chemistry that has been captured in every instalment since. Even if you hate the propulsive, blockbuster action that the majority of the series is known for, there's no denying this is one slick flick.
1. Furious 7 (2015)
After moving away from its street-racing origins and entering espionage territory, the Fast and Furious franchise struggles with some major highs and lows. Furious 7 is where the franchise peaked. A brilliant balance of action and narrative depth is achieved with the introduction of Jason Statham as the new villain Deckard Shaw, the brother of Owen Shaw who promises to exact revenge on Dom and the crew. They are, however, preoccupied after being recruited to stop a hacker’s surveillance program getting into the wrong hands.
While Furious 7 might follow the cliched sequel schtick of being bigger and bolder than its predecessors, director James Wan handles the action sequences – most notably some jaw-dropping skyscraper hopping – with as much finesse as Dom behind the wheel at 140 miles an hour. The film also offers a touching tribute to Walker (in his last movie before his death) that feels heartfelt but without diving too far into cheesy sentimentality. A fitting send off for a beloved actor.
Want more Fast and Furious? Then be sure to check our our breakdown of the Fast 10 ending, plus a look at the wildest Fast and Furious moments, including that time they went to space.
