The Fast and Furious movies have had an incredible run of having huge stars drive fast cars alongside Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto, but one of the most legendary has to be when Helen Mirren joined the franchise in 2017 to play Magdalene Shaw. And as Diesel and Mirren have made clear over the years, the two actors have really hit it off since meeting and working together. Diesel even penned a tribute to the Oscar winner to remind us of their friendship.
The love fest between the pair of Fast & Furious stars happened thanks to Mirren’s tenacity to get into the Fast franchise. She previously said she “begged” the actor and producer to let her be in the movies so she could get the chance to drive fast cars in a big-budget popcorn movie. Expressing his appreciation for his co-star, Diesel wrote on Instagram,
While I travel between coasts… often getting the best writing done up in Bear Country… I often hear from friends who are traveling, many of whom are enjoying the European ambience. Over the weekend, I heard from one of my favorite people on the planet. Helen Mirren… that Auntie you love to talk to, who has seen everything and always has an outlook on life based on experience, wisdom and compassion.
On Wednesday, Diesel took to social media to share a set of photos with himself and Mirren during their time on the Fast & Furious movie and wrote some sweet words about their relationship. He continued:
It’s interesting how fitting the character she portrays in our saga is… we wanted a European matriarch to expand our universe. Someone uniquely independent and raw, who witnessed brotherhood and its complexities as the mother of the Shaw brothers. Her synchronicity with the Dom character is something the audience gravitates to time and time again. It was her after all who came up with the line ‘you’re my favorite Yankee’. Haha.
How sweet is this message? Vin Diesel spoke to having Helen Mirren join the series particularly as the mom of the Shaw boys, played by Jason Statham and Luke Evans. Over the years, Dom and Queenie have shared a number of great scenes, and Diesel and Mirren have shared a number of wonderful press tour moments – even dancing in the rain together.
Diesel points out that Dom and Queenie have a synchronicity on screen, which Mirren has echoed before (via YouTube) when she said they “understand each other” and said that the characters are “made from the same material.” He also said this in the social media post:
I am blessed that she is a part of our mythology… but even more grateful that she is a part of my family off screen.
Diesel’s words do have us thinking where the latest of Fast & Furious movies currently is in the production process, and if Mirren will be involved. While we know Fast X, Part 2 won’t be among upcoming 2025 movies, it’s reportedly going to start filming this summer. Early this year, Diesel said they would bring the production to Los Angeles this time around in support of the industry following the wildfires in January affecting the livelihoods of many in Southern California.
We don’t know much about Fast X, Part 2, but it’s supposed to wrap up the long-running movie series that first started in 2001. And it just wouldn’t be the same if Dom and Queenie don’t have more scenes together. Fingers crossed! While we wait, we can look forward to seeing Mirren in The Thursday Murder Club, arriving for those of you with a Netflix subscription on August 28.