If you sign up to take part in the Fast and Furious franchise, you’ve gotta know what you’re in for, right? While the stunts have certainly got bigger and crazier as the years have gone on, even from the first movie all the way back in 2001, street racing was at the centre of the story. Therefore, if you’re gonna appear in a Fast movie, you’ve got to be able to not only drive, but drive well – surely?
Well, for two core members of the Fast Fam, this was not the case. Neither Michelle Rodriguez, who plays Letty – the wife of Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) – and Jordana Brewster, who plays his sister Mia had their driving licenses when they landed their roles.
Brewster spoke to Insider in 2013 about the pressure she was under to pass her test first time; “There was a ticking clock. If I didn’t get my license, I wasn’t going to be able to get insured for the movie. Within a week of taking my driving test, we were flown to Las Vegas for this special driving class. So I had to pass or I wouldn’t have been in the movie.”
But Brewster cannot drive manual cars (as opposed to automatic ones), known in the US as being able to drive ‘stick;’ “I tried. I told (director) Justin Lin I was going to learn how to do it. And then I learned in a parking garage in Westwood. It was so boring and so complicated at the same time. You know I went up and down this parking garage.”
“Then the instructor was like, ‘okay, so you’re ready to hit the streets now.’ And I was like, ‘no, I think I’ll pass.’ Luckily all we have to do is fake it. And Paul (Walker) is kind of an expert on what to do and I just ask him, ‘does this look believable?’ And that’s how I do it.”
Making movies is all about faking it until you make it. While we wait for Fast X – the tenth movie in the franchise – check out our guide to the best characters in the Fast franchise.