After continuing beyond the perfect ending point ten years ago, the Fast & Furious series will now undoubtedly struggle to end the franchise in a satisfying way. The Fast & Furious franchise began as a series about street racing, but quickly evolved into one of the biggest action franchises in Hollywood. Over the years, the stunts in Fast & Furious movies have gotten more ridiculous and over-the-top. While these stunts have led to several entertaining films, the Fast & Furious movies are definitely not as highly regarded as they once were.

However, since the upcoming Fast 11 is reportedly the last Fast & Furious movie, it has promised to return to the franchise’s roots. Even though Fast 11 may be more focused on street racing and include less unrealistic stunts, it will still be difficult for the film to provide a satisfying conclusion to the franchise. In fact, all hopes for a satisfying conclusion were abandoned when Vin Diesel decided to continue the franchise beyond 2015’s Furious 7. Furious 7 would have been the perfect ending for the franchise, and the movies that have come out since haven’t felt the same.

Furious 7’s Ending Was The Right Opportunity For Fast & Furious To End

Furious 7 Has By Far The Best Ending Of The Series

Production on Furious 7 became incredibly difficult after the sudden death of franchise star Paul Walker. Alongside Diesel, Walker was the lead of the Fast & Furious franchise. The relationship between Diesel and Walker’s characters, Dom and Brian, was by far the best part of the Fast & Furious movies. Even though Walker pᴀssed away in real life, Furious 7 does not kill off Brian O’Connor. Instead, Brian decides to retire so that he can spend time with his family.

Therefore, the ending of Furious 7 is focused on the relationship between Dom and Brian. After showing a montage of Walker throughout the Fast & Furious franchise, Dom goes for a sunset drive alone. However, Brian, his best friend, quickly catches up with him, allowing the two of them to go for a drive together. Eventually, the road splits in two and Dom and Brian go their separate ways. This was a perfect farewell for Brian, but also would have been a great place to end the franchise.

Why Fast & Furious Continued After Furious 7 Without Paul Walker’s Brian

Vin Diesel Decided To Continue The Franchise After Furious 7

After Walker’s death, some believed Furious 7 would be the last film in the Fast & Furious franchise. Even Chris Morgan, who wrote several movies in the series, thought going out on a high and leaving the franchise alone might be the best course of action. However, the decision on whether to continue the franchise after Furious 7 ultimately came down to Diesel. Since Walker had already confirmed the eighth Fast & Furious film before his death, Diesel believed he had an obligation to make it happen. In 2015, Diesel told MTV:

In some ways, when your brother guarantees something, you feel like you have to make it come to pᴀss. Seven is for Paul. Eight is from Paul.

Therefore, for Diesel, making The Fate of the Furious was a way of honoring Walker after his pᴀssing. In addition, it must be noted that Furious 7 was the first film in the franchise to make over $1 billion. Furious 7 made over $1.5 billion at the worldwide box office, then The Fate of the Furious made over $1.2 billion (via The Numbers). Therefore, it also made financial sense to continue the franchise after Furious 7.

Fast & Furious Just Hasn’t Been The Same Without Brian O’Connor

Brian Was Perhaps The Best Fast & Furious Character

While Diesel’s Dominic Toretto was already a main character before Furious 7, recent films in the franchise have focused on him even more. The Fast & Furious films after Furious 7 have continued to follow the crew that has continued to grow throughout the course of the series. While there are many great characters in the Fast & Furious franchise, the recent movies in the series haven’t felt the same without Brian O’Connor. The last few Fast & Furious movies have proved that Brian truly was the heart of the group.

While it is still somewhat interesting to see what characters like Dom, Letty, Roman, and Tej are up to, the Fast & Furious movies are more known for their stunts and action sequences now. This is why it’s a good thing that Fast 11 will reportedly be the last film in the franchise. Without Brian, the franchise is running out of intriguing stories to tell. Therefore, while it likely won’t be as good as Furious 7’s ending, hopefully the next film in the series can provide a somewhat satisfying ending to the Fast & Furious franchise.

Sources: MTV, The Numbers