The evolution of the Fast & Furious franchise has been fascinating to see. Starting out as a movie about street racing and evolving into a masterclass of high-octane, car-based stunts, these films are so far removed from where they started — and in the best way possible. While the most recent films have delivered some of the best stunts in the franchise’s history, there are many moments from earlier films worth highlighting, as well.
Skydiving Cars (Furious 7)
Easily the greatest single set piece in this franchise’s entire eight-film run, the skydiving cars sequence from Furious 7 is a spectacular feat of both action filmmaking and practical stunt work. It’s nearly impossible to top, but it’d be fun to see them try.
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Saving Letty (Fast & Furious 6)
Some might consider this a jumping-the-shark moment for the franchise, but to do so would be a disservice to the sheer brilliance of the sequence. Taking place in Spain, high above the ground (but not as high as the skydiving sequence) on two two-lane highways bridging the gap between the ravine below, Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) crashes his car into the guardrail, flies over the gap between the highways, catches his girlfriend Letty midair, and lands safely on the other bridge.
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Opening Race (Tokyo Drift)
Almost as cool as the bridge sequence in Fast & Furious 6 is the opening race in Fast & Furious: Tokyo Drift. The scale is a lot smaller, to be sure, but it’s the strongest opening race in the series. Sean, an outsider, races a bully jock through an unfinished neighborhood in development. It’s exciting, it’s accompanied by Kid Rock’s “Bawitdaba,” and it’s the most fun race we’ve seen from this series so far.
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Boat Jump (2 Fast 2 Furious)
Just because it’s a clear homage to The Dukes of Hazzard doesn’t mean it’s not cool: Brian and Roman speeding off the land, into the air, and onto the bad guy’s boat is such a great practical stunt and an impressive feat. It’s an exciting end to a relatively small-scale sequel.
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Brian and Dom’s Race (Fast and the Furious)
The race that started it all: the first race between Dom and Brian, all the way back in The Fast and the Furious. It’s referenced throughout the rest of the franchise, sure, but for a good reason: the movies hadn’t gotten crazy yet, they hadn’t lost their street racing roots, and they knew how to make you feel the adrenaline rush that the drivers must’ve felt without taking it too over the top.
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Zombie Cars (Fate of the Furious)
What an inspired scene this is. Charlize Theron does a great job pulling a lot of the weight in The Fate of the Furious, and one such example of this is the zombie cars sequence. When she and her team coordinate an attack by hacking into any and every car in the city at once, they unleash their horde of driverless cars on the team in one of the craziest sequences we’ve seen from the franchise yet.
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Hobbs v. Toretto (Fast Five)
The Rock vs. Vin Diesel, fighting each other in an extended sequence like two hand-to-hand combat experts, is hard to look away from. Fast Five was praised across the board when it was released, and this fight sequence was part of the reason why: fans waited a long time for it, and it definitely paid off.
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Hobbs & Shaw’s Prison Break (Fate of the Furious)
Like the zombie cars sequence, the Rock and Jason Statham’s characters breaking out of prison in The Fate of the Furious is so inspired and so well-done. The film didn’t get great reviews (not as great as the fifth, sixth, or seventh installments, at least), but that doesn’t mean that its stunts are any less great.
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Pumpkin Seat Fight (Fate of the Furious)
Further proof of how great the stunts in The Fate of the Furious are: in an extended homage to Hard Boiled, Jason Statham’s character fights off countless goons… all while taking care of Vin Diesel’s newborn son, who sits comfortably wearing noise-canceling headphones in a pumpkin seat.
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Safe Drag (Fast Five)
This scene is one of the wildest and most destructive we’ve seen thus far. As Dom and Brian drag a huge safe through Rio, attached to each of their cars with by a huge, thick cable, chaos reigns supreme. Cars are smashed, windows are smashed, buildings are smashed, it’s great.
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