The Fast & Furious character guide: Who's in Fast X?

From the streets of Los Angeles to the desert of Abu Dhabi, Dom has yet to meet a location he can’t turn into a race track or a demolition derby. Now a father, just like his buddy Brian (the late Paul Walker), Dom finds himself torn between saving the world and protecting his daughter when a villain from his past shows up. (We’ll get to that guy in a bit). Armed with an impressive garage of sports cars and a closet full of sleeveless shirts, and unburdened by international laws, Dom must ride once again with his crew to stop the bad guys from ruining his “Corona and chill” lifestyle. After 10 movies, something tells us Dom will succeed.

The dense and twisted timelines and drama of the Fast & Furious movies would make soap operas blush. But fans love it when the series reaches back into its convoluted past for a little bit of narrative ret-con action, and that’s exactly what Fast X does with its new villain, Dante, whose origins trace back to key events in Fast Five.

The son of Fast Five’s deceased baddie, ruthless drug lord Herman Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida), Dante seeks revenge against Team Dom for the loss of both his father and his family fortune following a heist gone wrong in the fifth movie. Dom has never had a foil like Dante, who seems to match him pound-for-pound behind the wheel and with his love of “familia.” Expect Dante to be a very sadistic thorn in Dom’s side as he seeks to satisfy his vendetta.

The closest thing The Fast And The Furious franchise has to a “Big Bad,” Cipher constantly tries to roadblock our heroes with her unique brand of manipulative cyber-terrorism. Equal parts crafty and psychopathic, Cipher seems hellbent on stalling Dom and his crew’s engines for good. Last time we saw Cipher in action, she evaded a fiery airborne death when the plane she was piloting remotely was destroyed. Now, it seems that Fast X will put her back into play, and in at least one major fight scene—with Dom’s wife, Letty (Michelle Rodriguez). Fast movies love to have enemies turned into allies, so don’t be surprised if Cipher’s battle royale glimpsed in the Fast X trailer is a precursor to her maybe joining Dom behind the wheel.

Don’t sell Mia short: She’s more than just Dom’s sister and the love of Brian’s life. She’s the beating heart of this team; a very capable driver who is at least three moves ahead of the opposition. She has been a staple of the series since 2001’s The Fast And The Furious, where she fell in love with Brian despite a brief breakup over him being an undercover cop charged with taking Dom down. While Walker died tragically in real life, his character still lives on in The Fast & Furious universe (offscreen, in the Canary Islands, helping Mia raise their child). Mia is fiercely protective and devoted to her family, and doesn’t particularly care for Cipher. Expect some serious sparks to fly should Cipher cross over into Mia’s lane.

Letty was at Dom’s side from the jump in the first Fast And The Furious movie before seemingly dying while undercover in the fourth entry, Fast & Furious. But, because movies, this badass was resurrected in Fast 6. Since her return to the franchise, Letty has proven herself to be just as good a driver as Dom—sometimes, even better. There isn’t a car she can’t drive or a bad guy she can’t punch, and Fast X seems primed to give her even more screen time to show off her impressive action hero skills.

John Cena made his Fast & Furious debut in F9 as Jakob, where he first fought his siblings—Dom and Mia (Jordana Brewster)—before burying the considerable hatchet and going into hiding. A former master thief and operative of Kurt Russell’s Mr. Nobody, Jakob is poised to put his car-driving skills to good use as he reunites with his family to take on Reyes.

An expert street racer and former criminal, Roman is the fast-talking, faster-driving comedic relief within Dom’s crew. After making his debut in 2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious opposite Brian, Roman would remain on the sidelines until Fast Five in 2011. Since then, he’s been a staple of the franchise, last seen taking a Pontiac Fiero into space (because FAMILY) with his best friend…

Tej is to Dom’s crew what Q is to James Bond, but with scary-good mechanic skills on top of his gadget guru abilities. He put both skillsets to good use in Fast 9, when the series jumped the shark—and escaped Earth’s atmosphere—with help from longtime buddies Tej and Roman. With a rocket strapped to their two-door sedan, Tej put his tech expertise to good use and once again saved the world. Last seen in Los Angeles settling in for some BBQ with Dom and pals, Tej is expected to play a vital role in Dom’s plan to outrun and outsmart Reyes and his vendetta.

Shaw (AKA “Deck”), the former villain turned anti-hero, became a member of Dom’s crew after spending most of Furious 7 trying to take his future family down. While trying to avenge the death of his older brother, Owen, Shaw pulled a Reyes and relentlessly pursued Dom and his team. Shaw soon found himself at the center of much controversy among fans, when he was allowed admittance into Dom’s crew after he seemingly killed fan-favorite Han (Sung Kang). Thankfully, Han was resurrected—which surprised the hell out of a regretful Deck when Han showed up at his would-be killer’s door. Shaw would also find himself teaming up with DSS Agent and sometimes auxiliary member of Dom’s crew, Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson). The last time audiences saw Shaw in action, outside of his own Hobbs & Shaw spin-off movie, was during a mid-credits scene in Fast 9. He and Han are expected to share some notable screen time in Fast X.

One of Dom’s best drivers—and the best drifter ever—Han faked his death at the hands of Deckard Shaw only to re-enter the race when Dom needed him the most. First introduced in 2006’s The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift, this former thief turned exceptional hero has seen his fair share of tragedy. Following the death of his lover, Gisele, Han fled the United States to live in Tokyo. There, he was recruited by a former associate of Gisele, Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell), to recover a dangerous doomsday weapon. Despite all the loss Han has endured, he has managed to overcome it with his unique brand of strong-and-silent heroics. How he will fair opposite Shaw is one of the many things fans can’t wait to see in Fast X.

A hacker with a heart of gold (naturally), Ramsey made a memorable appearance in Fast 7 as the creator of that movie’s MacGuffin, the God’s Eye—a piece of tech that can hack into anything in under four minutes. Working with Letty in Fast 9, Ramsey played a key role in saving the world from the dangerous weapons program, Project Aries.

The charismatic matriarch of the Shaw family, Queenie is as formidable behind the wheel as her son Deck. Not much is known about her pre-Fast & Furious life, other than she is the mother of three boys and was once married to their very abusive father. She and her husband presumably led a life of crime, which explains why she eventually met with Dom and became an unlikely ally in his multi-vehicle quest for high-octane heroics. Queenie proved instrumental in helping Dom against Jakob in Fast 9, while also serving as a surrogate mom to family’s number one fan.

The son of Mr. Nobody, Little Nobody (never change, Fast & Furious) is a top secret, clandestine government operative with access to all the resources and tech necessary to save the world. But sometimes, he and his dad need help from Dom and his family. Little is known about the role Little Nobody will play in the new movie, but it’s highly likely he’ll help our heroes level-up their automotive battle against Reyes.

Fast X races into theaters Friday, May 19