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Fast X: Jordana Brewster Talks Paul Walker & Bigger Finale Role for Brian & Mia’s Kids
Mia Toretto hones that "mama bear" instinct to protect the family’s cubs.
The kids of the Fast & Furious films may spend most of their time in the offscreen background, serving as the vulnerable heart of the extended Toretto family that Dom (Vin Diesel) will once more stake his life to protect in Fast X. But ever since Mia (Jordana Brewster) and Brian (the late Paul Walker) launched a new generation with the birth of first child Jack in Fast & Furious 6, it’s the children who’ve given the whole team their biggest reason to keep doing what they dangerously do.
After all, nothing has the power to bring down Dom’s fist of righteous vengeance like Cipher (Charlize Theron), threatening the life of young Brian Marcos in the gripping airplane scene in 2017's The Fate of the Furious. It’s a harrowing moment from the 8th Fast Saga installment, one that ends with the murder of Dom’s ex-flame Elena Neves (Elsa Pataky) right before Dom’s eyes.
RELATED: Everything You Need to Know Before Seeing Fast X in Theaters
With Fast X charging hard toward theaters for its worldwide May 19 debut, Brewster says she’d like to see the Fast Saga’s kids step into a bigger role as the franchise wends its way toward the end of its epic two-decade (and counting) run. The family's always been willing to put lives on the line to look out for each other, of course — but there's just something extra about the protective stakes when the lives you're protecting are bound by ties of actual blood.
“I would like it to end with… I want to integrate [Brian and Mia’s] kids into the franchise, because I think when Mia unleashes that mama bear energy, she gets fierce,” said Brewster at the film’s May 12 red carpet premiere event in Rome. “I want to see that fierceness come out of her more. I think that would be really awesome.”
How Paul Walker Factors into Fast X
Fans have long known Mia as Dom’s sister, and Brian as his eventual brother in-law (which in turn makes Jack and lil’ sis Olivia Dom’s nephew and niece). Add to that the F9 introduction of John Cena as long-lost brother Jakob Toretto — not to mention every other beloved member of the wider Fast & Furious team — and there’s never been more for Dom and the family to lose as Fast X sets up a new storyline for Dante (Jason Momoa), Dom’s out-for-blood new nemesis.
Fast X teasers already have shown Mia going full mama bear, fighting to fend off violent invaders at home as targets of Dante’s sworn bid to hit Dom where it hurts the most: his family, of course. But as Brewster also hinted, it’s not just Dom who’s got serious skin in the game when it comes to protecting his own. In addition to watching over Dom’s son, Brian Marcos, while dad’s away fighting bad guys, Brian and Mia have their own growing team of junior Fast Saga family members worth fighting for.
Though Walker’s 2013 passing means Fast X will likely limit his appearance to footage left from from previous films, Brewster said both Mia and Brian will have their roles to play in Fast X… especially since the movie’s story harkens back to the fateful events of 2011’s Fast Five.
“There’s a lot of footage from Fast Five, so Brian’s actually in the film, which is really cool,” said Brewster from the Fast X red carpet. “It’s a really nice way to integrate him back into the franchise, which is very awesome … His energy is always with me.
“I work with the Paul Walker Foundation, and that’s something that’s very, very close and dear to my heart,” she added. “Paul has this thing where it’s like ‘Do Good’ and we have something with the foundation called the ‘Do Good Challenge.’ And any way you can do something good or pass something good along to someone else, that’s keeping his spirit alive. So that’s what I try to think about every single day.”
Walker and the rest of the Fast Saga family are firmly on our minds, too, as Fast X looms closer and closer to its May 19 release date. Score your Fast X tickets here, while reliving some of the franchise’s biggest highlights at Peacock — where both Furious 7 and F9 are streaming now.
