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Fast X star Alan Ritchson says Keanu Reeves was originally set to play his character, Agent Aimes, in the action-packed sequel – "a little stroke of luck and good timing" meant that the role landed in his lap instead.
"I was working on a movie with Hilary Swank up in Winnipeg in the freezing cold, and I got a call that things had shifted in the plans with Keanu Reeves, which is I think who was originally intended to play my part. Tough act to follow," the Reacher actor told Entertainment Weekly recently.
A few years back, longtime Fast and Furious writer Chris Morgan suggested that Reeves was geared up to voice the villainous Eteon head in Dwayne Johnson-led spin-off Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, but things didn't work out. In the new flick, The Agency boss Aimes turns out to be a bit of a baddie, too, betraying Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) by working with sociopath Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa).
Starring Brie Larson, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Jason Statham, Helen Mirren, and more, Fast X was directed by Louis Leterrier following Justin Lin's shock departure in April 2022. When Ritchson received a phone call from producer Jeff Kirschenbaum at the time, he mistakenly worried he'd been cut from the cast list.
"I got another call while I was filming from Jeff, who produces Fast, and he sounded real low," he recalled. "I was like, 'oh, God. Whatever you've got to say, just say it. I can take it. I'm a big boy.' He goes, 'You're not going to be working with Justin on this.' I was like, 'okay ... am I still in the movie?'
"He was like, 'yeah, of course. We're excited to work with you, but we've decided to go our separate ways with Justin.' I was like, 'Okay, you can just say that next time!' So I'm very grateful that it worked out."
Fast X is in UK and US cinemas now. For more on the movie, check out our interview with Leterrier, who spoke to us about getting THAT post-credits cameo and how Google Maps saved the final act.
