Fast & Furious 7 ripped through the box office furiously this week, garnering a staggering $384 million in sales worldwide.
The latest in the Fast franchise has been widely anticipated by fans not just for the ridiculously amazing car scenes (which are to be expected), but also for how it handled the late Paul Walker’s character.
Moviegoers got more than that with the introduction of new favorite Mr. Nobody, portrayed by Kurt Russell.
Russell’s character in Fast & Furious 7 is so enigmatic that he literally has no name! He’s a Nobody with some serious connections in the government and who can just swoop down in the midst of the action just to make it his own.
The character is not just some bureaucrat in the office either. Mr. Nobody orchestrates and funds that pretty complex mission of acquiring a sports car from the top of a Dubai superstructure. The government spook even joins our protagonists in taking down Jason Statham’s Deckard Shaw.
Russell is the perfect actor to portray Mr. Nobody. The 63-year-old actor has got the looks and the charm. Plus he’s no stranger to action movies, having portrayed anti-hero Snake Plissken in Escape from New York and Escape from LA.
With those credentials, it’s no wonder that Russell was given a lot of screen time and Dwayne Johnson’s character Luke Hobbs mostly sat out the action scenes.
Kurt Russell to be part of Fast and Furious 8? http://t.co/v90ENx184u #ITShowbiz pic.twitter.com/F6eT1lgzqM
— India Today Showbiz (@Showbiz_IT) April 3, 2015
Fans are saying it’s a sign that the franchise is going to go in another direction. For while Johnson’s character was very effective in reviving the flagging franchise, it seems like it’s time to pass the baton to Mr. Nobody.
Star Vin Diesel alluded as much. In a recent interview, the buff star mentioned that Russell’s character will be more fleshed out in the next movie and that Furious 8 might be set in New York.
Aside from Russell’s character, there have also been reports that the next Fast & Furious will also see another familiar face in the foray. Actress Eva Mendes is said to be reprising her role as US Customs Agent Monica Fuentes.
Of course, these are all speculations right now but it does give fans something to chew on while they wait for the next installment of their favorite car-wrecking movie.