A month after Vin Diesel took to Instagram to beg Dwayne Johnson to reprise his role as Luke Hobbs, even going as far as to drag his own kids and the late Paul Walker into the conversation, Johnson finally addressed the post in a recent interview with CNN, calling Diesel’s stunt queen move “an example of his manipulation.”
“I was very surprised by Vin’s recent post,” said Johnson. “This past June, when Vin and I actually connected not over social media, I told him directly — and privately — that I would not be returning to the franchise. I was firm yet cordial with my words and said that I would always be supportive of the cast and always root for the franchise to be successful, but that there was no chance I would return. I privately spoke with my partners at Universal as well, all of whom were very supportive as they understand the problem.”
“I didn’t like that he brought up his children in the post, as well as Paul Walker’s death. Leave them out of it,” Johnson continued. “We had spoken months ago about this and came to a clear understanding. My goal all along was to end my amazing journey with this incredible Fast & Furious franchise with gratitude and grace.”
“It’s unfortunate that this public dialogue has muddied the waters. Regardless, I’m confident in the Fast universe and its ability to consistently deliver for the audience, and I truly wish my former costars and crew members the best of luck and success in the next chapter,” Johnson added.
In the Instagram post that the Jungle Cruise star is referring to, Diesel wrote in part, “My little brother Dwayne… the time has come. The world awaits the finale of Fast 10. As you know, my children refer to you as Uncle Dwayne in my house. There is not a holiday that goes by that they and you don’t send well wishes… but the time has come.”
A representative for Diesel has not commented to PEOPLE.
When I first reported on this story I thought Vin was being manipulative, especially when I heard he and Dwayne had a private conversation about possibly returning, and at the time Dwayne declined.
Besides, I liked Hobbs and Shaw, so I’d like to see another film with Dwayne and Jason Statham. Dwayne was clearly unhappy with the working conditions, and it’s no secret in the industry that Vin can be difficult to work with.
What Vin the producer and star of the final chapter of the franchise (which will be split into two films, BTW) needs to focus on is a good script and some cool action scenes, because Fast 9 was a hot, clunky mess.
Comments