All language subtitles for Icons.Unearthed.S03E03.The.Tune-Up.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-playWEB_track3_[eng]

NARRATOR: With two films down
and a third on the way,

Fast and the Furious
was a franchise in the making.

And it's just slick and fun
and just oozed coolness.

That's what I'm talking about.

NARRATOR: Now approaching
its third installment...

-What?
-...the real challenge

was no longer
simply box office,

but boxing above
its weight, again.

Justin, his mission was,

"I want to have
the James Bond opening."

NARRATOR:
With a rookie new director...

God, there's just
so much more pressure.

...cars but not stars...

They're going to try to see
if the cars are the stars, huh?

Well...

...the third and fourth
installments

needed to break the mold...

It seemed a little outrageous.

...break the law...

We had a designated director
to get arrested.

It's crazy.

...and somehow, always find
a way to break the barrier.

It was wild, man.

NARRATOR: Go faster.

Let's give them the sequel
they never fully got.

NARRATOR: Basically,
just go over the top.

That was something else.

NARRATOR: Maybe even overdo it.

Oh, shit!

We put Tommy Harper
in the hospital.

One of the worst
experiences of my life.

NARRATOR: Oh, and
there was the small matter

of resurrecting the dead.

When they said,
"We're gonna bring him back."

Everyone was like,
"How's that gonna work?"

[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]

NARRATOR: Following the less
than stellar box office return

of2 Fast 2 Furious,

Universal elected to start over

with a brand-new creative team,

beginning by putting out
a call for screenplays.

That's how Chris Morgan
came on board.

NARRATOR:
Universal was quickly drawn

to Chris's bold new vision,
which took the story

far from its New York
street racing roots.

Chris Morgan's initial pitch

was building a movie
around Dominic Toretto

going to Japan and avenging
the death of a friend.

NARRATOR: While he's there...

He learns about this whole
new world of drifting

kind of a subculture

within the street racing culture
over in Japan.

NARRATOR: Which, of course,
Dom can't help but partake in.

Chris Morgan had been inspired

by videos from Japan,

which he took to Universal.

The studio liked
what they were seeing

but had one question.

Drift? What do you mean drift?

NARRATOR: Drifting,
the art of getting sideways

and burning rubber without
losing control of the car.

Drifting goes back
to the '90s in Japan.

NARRATOR:
Where it was made popular

by one driver in particular.

Tsuchiya.

NARRATOR: That's two-time
Le Mans winning driver,

Keiichi Tsuchiya, AKA...

Drift King.

[TIRES SCREECHING]

He was a road racer,
and when he had a big lead,

he would celebrate

by drifting through
the last couple corners

and that became his staple.

Obviously,
drifting's been around
since the tire was invented.

But he really turned it
into a sport.

NARRATOR: Universal agreed
drifting was on the money.

There's this drift craze
happening in Japan,

so how can we
capitalize on that?

NARRATOR: But that was
the problem, the money.

That original pitch
from Chris Morgan

was just deemed
way too expensive.

But then, they called him back

and were like,
"Okay, the drifting can stay,

"but we're gonna have
to do a different story."

NARRATOR:
The story had to be different

because none of the big name
stars were returning.

The idea of getting
Paul Walker back

became less of a possibility,

even than getting Vin
or anyone else back.

NARRATOR: And even if
he was available,

Universal wasn't so sure
they wanted him.

It was rumored that
they thought he was too old

to continue the franchise
if it was just going to be him.

Or the demographic
at that point, right,

of these Fastmovies was...
Was a younger generation.

NARRATOR: So not only
did the producers

not have
any of their familiar stars,

it wouldn't have
the same budget, either.

Actually, we're looking
at this as like a $10 million,

you know,
straight-to-DVD type movie.

NARRATOR: This would be
Fast and Furious: Junior.

Tokyo Drift is in some ways

the high school version
of The Fast and the Furious.

Why don't you nice boys
let your cars do the talking?

NARRATOR: Centered on
a high school racer

from Arizona
named Sean Boswell...

I only race for pink slips.

...who lands in trouble

after some unscheduled
home renovation.

Can I get a copy of that?

NARRATOR: But Arizona
is a long way from Tokyo.

So the script called for
a big handbrake turn.

So where are we
moving this time?

NARRATOR:
Sent to live with his father.

And I don't want to see or hear

about you anywhere near cars.

NARRATOR: Sean takes
to the local culture

and drifts into drifting.

Let's race.

Eventually,
he has to find a mentor.

-Get in.
-A character called Han

that will show him the ropes.

Go, go, go, go, go,
go, go, go, go, go!

And ultimately he builds
his own newfound family

the same way as Brian
in the original movie

finds his family
within the racing community.

Not bad.

This group of lost individuals
finding a family

kind of runs
throughout all of them.

NARRATOR: But exactly how
this would all come together

was in the hands
of a new director.

Justin Lin signs on.

He was known
for his indie breakout

Better Luck Tomorrow.

-Stop jerking off. Let's go.
-[GUNSHOT]

Better Luck Tomorrow,
I guess it was

Justin's take on,
sort of, Goodfellas.

HOLLABAUGH: He was pretty fresh
out of film school.

It's his first movie ever.

NARRATOR: Which led
to his first studio feature,

Annapolis,

where he got to work
with two members

ofThe Fast and Furious family.

Jordana Brewster...

-Drop it, give me 20.
-...and Tyrese.

[STERNLY] Do you understand me?

For Justin,
it was an incredible break.

NARRATOR: Fast and Furious 3

would be his biggest movie
to date.

So Justin brought in people
he could trust.

He really liked to have
creative people around him

that he could count on.

NARRATOR: People like
editor, Fred Raskin.

All of Justin's core group
were all relatively young.

...sound editor, Peter Brown...

I just remember being like,
"Oh, my God,

you've got to do
Fast and Furious.

...and assistant editor,
Greg D'Auria...

Justin's an incredibly
loyal guy.

...all of whom had worked
together on Annapolis.

We were in Post

and Justin came in one day,

and he had, like, a DVD
of, like, some drift footage.

And I just remember
being terrified.

Tokyo Drift
was a much bigger animal.

Oh, my God, there's just
so much more pressure.

NARRATOR: It was also a change
of gear for a rising star

who landed the lead.

I was 24 years old

and probably
a little overconfident,

cocky, bratty kid.

I think it kind of come
across in my character.

Well, it's not the ride,
it's the rider.

It seemed like
it was always a lock

that Lucas Black
was gonna be Sean Boswell.

NARRATOR: And while
he might be best known

for his role in Sling Blade...

Then I can play football?

Sling Blade
with Billy Bob Thornton,

that was the career starter,
that kicked it off.

NARRATOR:
It was his role inJarhead

that made the studio
take notice.

Me, I had to join the Marines,
or go to jail.

Universal was really high
on him from his performance
in Jarhead.

If I'd have went to jail,
I'd be getting out today.

They trusted me enough
to just hire me outright

without auditioning
for the role.

They thought
I was perfect for it.

NARRATOR: But for a movie
set on the streets...

Oh, shit!

...Tokyo Drift needed
some street cred

and found it through music...

My ride's one of a kind.

With bringing Bow Wow in,

it was third straight
movie that

the kind of secondary
friend character

was played
by a real life rapper.

Shit. Gotta get in line.

TEJ: Take a real good look.

That's what you call
mutual respect.

A big part of that
was the soundtracks

of the first two movies.

The music
of street racing culture

in real life was a big deal.

♪ My life be like ♪

NARRATOR: ...with Bow Wow
cast as Twinkie.

At least let me drive.

And they had had
another role in the film.

It was a character
named Phoenix.

NARRATOR: Justin knew
the perfect guy for the role.

Sung Kang had been
in Better Luck Tomorrow.

Get the fuck off my car.

HOLLABAUGH: Justin loved Sung.

He thought he was amazing.

He wanted to work
with him again.

He was someone
who hadn't really broken out

in a big acting role yet.

NARRATOR: And Universal agreed.

But Sung Kang wouldn't be

playing the character
of Phoenix.

Instead, they would
tailor the role for him.

Having Sung Kang
play a character,

-once again named...
-WOMAN: Han.

The name's the same,
the character is the same.

It's not just, you know,

"Oh, this is a little nod
to Better Luck Tomorrow."

Like, no, this is the same guy.

You need me.

NARRATOR: But they would
have to make a few alterations

to make Han
more Hollywood-friendly.

LAWRENCE: If you've seen
Better Luck Tomorrow,

the character, Han,
does smoke a lot in the movie.

So now, you know,

the explanation
for Han always snacking

is that he used to smoke.

He quit smoking,
so he snacks instead.

NARRATOR: And almost as
important as casting the actors

was sourcing the cars
they would drive.

Cute little toys.

[TIRES SCREECHING]

Cars are not necessarily built

for that kind of
extreme driving.

They're built
to look a certain way,

and last a couple takes,

and then they build
nine of them.

-We're building
nine Monte Carlos.
--Yes, sir.

And then we're gonna
wreck 'em all.

This movie,
let's build five of them

and then take the money saved

and make two of them
really good.

'Cause just like
with the driver's skill,

the car has to have
certain skills also.

That was making the cars
the stars.

NARRATOR: Well, if the cars
cast in Tokyo Drift

were in acting,

their fee would be up there
with Vin Diesel.

The budget, I think,
was 15 million on just cars.

NARRATOR:
And if you're wondering

how Universal could spend
15 million on just cars,

when they said...

We're looking at this
as, like, a $10 million

straight-to-DVD type movie.

NARRATOR:
But they must have realized

to do it right was gonna
take a little bit more

and upped the budget
to 85 million

giving them plenty of money
to do this,

and this, and even this.

So suddenly...

There was a lot of money
to spend.

NARRATOR:
And they got busy spending it

when shooting got underway
in Victorville, California,

October 2005.

It was time to move fast
and break things.

We did a whole giant car chase

for a couple of weeks.

NARRATOR:
That's how long it took

to get the opening action
sequence in the can,

with nothing but hard driving
and practical effects.

Such as...

Monte Carlo
through the framed house,

That race scene sets the tone
of the whole movie

and really shows
who my character is.

We had the construction crew
build the breakaway on that,

and we just built a ramp

and some guy
drove right through.

-[ENGINE ROARING]
-[GLASS SHATTERING]

[ALL LAUGHING]

NARRATOR:
Which was followed by...

Monte Carlo barrel roll.

NARRATOR: And while
that roll was impressive,

real magic was happening
on the inside.

They put this car
through this pipe

and so they just had it
on a rotisserie

going around in circles.

They had all that trash.

That is one of
my favorite scenes.

NARRATOR:
But getting these stunts done

in a controlled environment
was a breeze

compared to what would be
required in Japan.

In Japan, it's very hard
to get permits to film.

NARRATOR: It was time
to stop breaking cars

and start breaking the law.

They were doing
a lot of the filming

fully illegally.

NARRATOR: Japan might be
the home of drifting,

but Tokyo is just about
the last city

any crew would want to be
filming fast cars in the wild.

When they were filming
Tokyo Drift,

they could not get permits.

NARRATOR:
Especially when you're
doing it guerrilla style.

They were doing
a lot of the filming

fully illegally.

Whenever they would try
to film in the popular areas

like Shibuya Crossing,

they knew the moment
they rolled out any cameras,

they probably had
around 20 minutes

until the police would show up.

The police would see
our productions going on.

They'll come and...
And arrest the director.

We couldn't lose Justin Lin,

otherwise the production
would be shut down.

So we had a designated
Japanese director on set.

to get arrested.

If need be, you know.

So, it was... It was wild, man.

NARRATOR: Permits weren't
a problem back in L.A.

where a humble parking garage
was turned into a racetrack.

95% of it
was filmed in America.

[TIRES SCREECHING]

Couldn't tell.

The garage is Hawthorne Mall.

NARRATOR:
But driving and drifting

in these enclosed spaces
was going to require

Hollywood's
finest stunt drivers,

which in 2005,
happened to be this guy...

-Yes.
-...and this guy.

This was like
my big breakthrough.

Where Samuel comes from,

drifting and driving
are often the same thing.

I grew up in northern Sweden,
above the Arctic Circle.

We had snow
seven months a year.

So, my dad
let me start driving

when I was very young
on frozen lakes

where they made ice tracks.

So you were sliding
in the car all the time.

Basically, you were drifting,

so I learned to drive sideways

when I was, uh,
eight, nine years old.

NARRATOR: Samuel was
a test driver for Volvo,

but always wanted to
get paid to go sideways.

I always had a longing

to get into stunt work
in Hollywood.

So, I quit my job

and sold everything
and moved over here.

NARRATOR: Meanwhile,
racing driver Tanner's career

was literally on ice.

I was an ice driving instructor,

so sliding around a lot
and loved car control.

NARRATOR:
So they were both natural fits

to double for the lead actors,

that is, after they've dyed
their hair.

Then let's race.

NARRATOR:
And while it was easy

to double for the actors
on long shots

to really sell
the interior shots,

a little sleight of hand
was required.

I was sitting in the left seat

with a small steering wheel,

and he was sitting in
the leather seat next to me

-faking driving.
-[TIRES SCREECHING]

NARRATOR:
But the boy from Alabama

didn't want to fake anything.

BLACK: I was able
to learn how to drift

before we started filming.

I felt like I picked it up
pretty fast.

And so the whole time
while we were filming,

I'm telling Justin Lin,

I'm like, "Look,
I can do this scene."

And he's like,
"Man, it's gonna be tough."

Justin was right.

NARRATOR: Some of the driving
was considered so risky,

it might not be driven at all.

He drifts the car and went
that far away from the wall.

I was gonna do a composite shot

and have the editor
put it together,

but Tanner, he said,
"I can get close to that wall."

And I said, "Man, I don't know.
I don't wanna wreck this car."

And he drifted that car
three times

about that close to the wall.
[MIMICS TIRES SQUEAKING]

A lot of people weren't exposed

to really what you could do
safely drifting.

NARRATOR: Lucas, however,
was determined

to find out on his own.

I would even sneak off
while we were filming.

Get in the car and then,
you know, just a little flip

on the sun visor,

-keys would fall down.
-[KEYS JINGLING]

-[ENGINE STARTS]
-I would go backstage
Universal lot

and practice and drift.

Desperate Housewives
were filming. I would just

[MIMICKING TIRES SCREECHING]
burn rubber through there

-and everybody's like,
"What are you doing?"
-[CAR HONKS]

And I'm laughing the whole time.

NARRATOR: While Lucas
was testing everyone's patience

on Universal's back lots,

the stunt drivers
were testing the limits

in the real world.

We're here in downtown L.A.

and you can see
we've converted into Tokyo.

NARRATOR: Downtown L.A.
had a lot to live up to,

impersonating one of Tokyo's
most iconic locations.

Shibuya Square, I'm sure
they would have loved

to drift through in person,

but just not possible.

NARRATOR: Known for its
incandescent sea of humanity,

Shibuya Square, Tokyo,

was played by a more
demure stand-in.

It was a church parking lot
behind a Costco or something.

NARRATOR:
Which created a safe space,

but is still needed to be given
Tokyo's unique complexion.

And they set up rows of lights

on shipping containers
three or four stories high

to try to mimic the lights
that would be on people's faces

and on the ground
and things like that.

NARRATOR: And when they
couldn't squeeze any more

out of L.A.'s churches
and shopping precincts,

they simply
painted the town green.

Used a bunch of CGI to create

some of the buildings
with the main street.

We did a lot
of the stuff practically,

like almost all of it.

I only see a couple spots
in the film

where they digitally
put in cars.

NARRATOR: Even the camera rigs
were burning rubber.

They have this very cool
go-cart that had a camera

that would actually
drive through the crowd,

so you get
this unique experience.

NARRATOR:
Creating a kinetic frenzy.

All of the buildings

in one of the franchise's
key moments

in the mother of all drifts.

The idea was that the car
was gonna drift sideways

for a whole city block
and shoot out of the window.

And they didn't just
hook a car up to chains

and just pull it sideways
for a full city block.

NARRATOR:
This was gonna come down

to good old-fashioned
stunt driving.

If they could just
think of something,

We had to kind of come up
with some things on the spot.

NARRATOR: What Tanner
and Samuel came up with was...

kind of backwards.

Me and Tanner,
he was in the VK car

and I was in the Mustang
and he nosed it into me,

then we were reversing together.

I was 60 mph backwards.

[ENGINE REVVING]

NARRATOR:
It was a death-defying
dance of drifting.

We have the shot, you know,
through the windshield...

[GUNSHOT]

...and Han goes and slides
through the intersection
and gets hit.

NARRATOR:
Actually, not so death-defying

for one key character,

in what became
one of the franchise's

most climactic exits,

the death of Han,

which upset a lot of people.

There were a lot of
really upset people

that were shooting
until sunrise every night.

NARRATOR: And so, the character
who had been imported

from another film altogether...

[EXPLOSION]

...was very suddenly exported.

So they definitely,
you know, were like,

"Oh, this character's dead."

NARRATOR: Dead,

but not necessarily
gone forever.

[CARS HONKING]

Meanwhile, the fun
on the set continued

as the lead actor finally
convinced the director

to give him
a real piece of the action.

BLACK: I'm like, "Justin,
hop in the car with me."

And I just start drifting.

He's like, "Come on, man,
What are you doing?"

And I'm like, "I wanna
show you I can drift."

He's like, "All right,
there's gonna be a scene

"where you're learning
how to drift down the mountain.

"When we film that scene,
you can drift."

So, that's actually
me drifting.

That's a dream come true
right there.

I did get to drift.

NARRATOR: But the one drift
to rule them all,

that was left
to the professionals

in the San Gabriel Canyon.

LEONARD: I mean,
we're going down this mountain.

That was the real deal.

We didn't do anything CG there.

If you went over this cliff,
you weren't walking away.

And you're drifting,
you're accelerating.

So going downhill, that
kind of doubles the danger.

It was the backside of a dam
with these zigzags.

It had a super steep slope,

but we literally had the tires

going over the edges
of this cliff,

sometimes, kicking dirt.

It was very dangerous
on these skinny little roads

with cliffs everywhere.

NARRATOR:
All that spectacular driving

may have been fast,

but it still needed
something added

to make it furious.

I'm in charge of all the sound
except for the music.

NARRATOR:
Peter's job did involve
a kind of music, though.

He had to get the notes right.

-These notes.
-[ENGINE REVVING]

RASKIN:
Justin knew all the car nuts
are gonna go see this movie.

So, making sure that we had all
the accurate engine sounds...

for every car
that's in the movie.

If you go out
and record your car,

it probably sounds
like a hair dryer...

or a fan.

So any car that we record

has to be the most outrageous
version of that engine.

[ENGINE ROARING]

NARRATOR: So production
had to go on the hunt

for the gnarliest
engines around.

If it doesn't have
at least 500 hp

and run on rocket fuel,

we're not interested
in that car,

NARRATOR:
In a movie about drifting

the skids had to be
more than just skids.

Sound designer Peter Brown
would take them

to the next level by adding...

A scream.

Or a wildcat.

NARRATOR: Or even this.

The shower door

and the sound of that squeegee.

[MIMICKING SQUEAKING]

If you do it just right,
it sounds like a skid.

[TIRES SCREECHING]

NARRATOR:
But even noisy movies

need to have
their quieter moments.

We used to come up here
when we were kids.

Even before we could drive,
we'd cut class.

NARRATOR: Even if the subtlety
is a little far-fetched.

This was one sequence
where we broke the reality.

When you're drifting...

[TIRES SCREECHING,
ENGINE ROARING]

NARRATOR: The reality
is the noise would be...

Well, we'll let
Fred explain it.

...the sounds
of the car engines

and the tire squeals
are so loud

you could never possibly
have a conversation.

But it just really felt
right for the movie.

So we said, "All right,
we're just gonna throw reality
out the window for this."

NARRATOR: Editor Fred Raskin
was hired for his strength,

cutting subtler scenes
like this.

Universal,
they had Dallas Puett

who had worked on
2 Fast 2 Furious.

He was gonna be co-editing
the movie with me,

and they primarily wanted him
cutting the action scenes

and me cutting pretty
much everything else.

NARRATOR: But then,
Dallas left the project.

At the time that Dallas left,

literally the next day,

the big Tokyo chase
needed to be edited,

and there was only one
editor on the movie

at that point, and that was me,

so, although no one wanted me
editing the action,

I, uh... [LAUGHS] I dug in

-[SCREAMS]
-[GLASS SHATTERING]

That's one of my favorite
sequences in the movie,

because you've got the actual
pathos for the characters.

It's fun, but it's also like

you're concerned
with the characters.

And then it has the death scene.

The emotional toll that
that takes.

NARRATOR: To see if that
emotion was working

along with all the action,

the cut was previewed
to test audiences.

It was well-received,

but it wasn't the same
outrageousness.

NARRATOR: It was all to do
with the end of the movie.

The original ending
was pretty different

from the ending
that we all know.

NARRATOR:
In the original ending,

after DK is defeated
in the race...

All of our heroes
are sitting around

saying, "What are you
gonna do next?"

Somebody's like,
"Well, I wish Han

"could have seen you win today,

"like, he would have been
so proud."

And then they kind of
drift off into the sunset.

Audiences were not
really into the ending.

NARRATOR: That is to say,
the end of Han.

There was an element
of sadness to it

that left the movie
on a bit of a down note.

NARRATOR:
But the test screenings
revealed a bigger problem

no amount of tinkering
in Post could fix.

Audiences felt like,

"We went to see
a Fast and Furiousmovie,

"where are Vin Diesel
and Paul Walker?"

NARRATOR: But what if
there was still a way

to give the audience
what it wanted?

What do we have to do
to get Vin?

NARRATOR: Apparently,
grab a 20-sided die
and roll for initiative.

Vin Diesel loves
Dungeons & Dragons.

HOLLABAUGH:
Justin went to Vin's house

desperate to convince him
to do a cameo.

They indulge him in talking

and maybe even playing
some Dungeons & Dragons.

Which leads them
to talking about mythology.

For Vin Diesel,
D&D is a big influence

on world building
and franchise building.

They eventually
spent hours discussing

the mythology of the
Dominic Toretto character,

where it could go,
what it could be

if he was willing to come
back in the franchise.

NARRATOR: And Justin must
have rolled a critical hit

because eventually...

Vin had agreed,
"I'll do a cameo."

NARRATOR: And Vin wasn't
even worried about his fee.

He had a bigger prize in mind.

He negotiates the rights
for the Riddick character.

NARRATOR: This guy.

All you people
are so scared of me.

NARRATOR: Not Dominic Toretto,
because...

The studio owned the rights
to both of these.

Pitch Black had happened
beforeFast and Furious,

then he had done
Chronicles of Riddick.

I bow to no man.

He wants to keep
playing this character

and keep, you know, making
movies with his character.

So, he said...

I want to trade.

"You sell Riddick
production rights to me,
to my company."

NARRATOR: The appropriately
named One Race Productions,

which he formed
with his sister, Samantha,

to produce the kind of
projects he believed in.

You got to love the brilliance
of One Race Production.

NARRATOR:
Because it's not just a nod

to hisFast and Furious career,

but also to his global outlook.

We don't really see the world
through the lens of white people

or Black people or Asian people
or Latina people.

We see the world

through the lens
of being one human race.

NARRATOR: And with that
global perspective,

he decided...

"I will do a cameo
inTokyo Drift,

"and we'll see
what happens after that."

NARRATOR:
All of which conspired
to make this head turn,

and this line.

Nice ride.

I won it from my friend Han
a few years ago.

NARRATOR: Among the most
lucrative in Hollywood.

'Cause up until then,
there's really no connection

to any of the first
two movies, right.

NARRATOR:
Which was a win for Vin,

but would it help the movie?

We screened it,

and the moment that
Vin hits the screen,

the audience
burst into applause.

I've never seen a film
so transformed

with the inclusion of one guy.

No one saw it coming.
They just went nuts for it.

It was a very powerful lesson
about star power.

NARRATOR: A lesson
Universal learned too late.

It is not received well.

Made a little over 150 million,

so for it even make
that much money

was a testament to
the strength of the fan base

and the desire to...
good, bad or indifferent,

to want more and more
from this world.

You know this ain't no
ten-second race.

I got nothing but time.

NARRATOR: As for Vin's cameo,

that might have saved the film
going straight to DVD,

and might yet
save the franchise.

That cameo was the single thread
that every fan clung to.

That was kind of the saving
grace of the franchise.

NARRATOR: The studio
had got the message

from Furious fans.

Universal thought there's still
money to be made here,

there's still engagement
from the audience.

It was successful enough
that the studio, they said,

"Okay, Justin,
make us another one."

NARRATOR:
But making the fans happy

would involve undoing what
had been done, because...

You know, obviously,
Sung's done with the franchise

having been killed off
in Tokyo Drift

and Justin also was like,

"Okay, that was like
a good experience.

"But, like, I'm good.
I'm cool with this. I'm done."

NARRATOR: Tokyo Drift
had burned through

one of its best characters

and lost its director.

Universal, they had
definitely been trying

to convince Justin Lin
to come back for another one.

NARRATOR: The only thing that
could save the franchise now

was a roast beef sandwich.

Justin says him and Sung

were driving up
to San Francisco.

They had stopped off
to eat somewhere.

Stopped at an Arby's.

And a whole bunch of fans
circled around them,

and they were so excited
to see Han.

LAWRENCE:
They're like, "Han! Han! Han!"

So excited to see Sung Kang,

Justin was kind of taken aback.

And he kind of realized

what was percolating
in the kind of fan community

that Han was
this fascinating character

who was so cool and were
devastated about his death.

So Justin said
they get back on the highway.

He's just thinking about
kind of the impact of that,

and he says to Sung,

"What a shame that Han's dead."

And Sung's like,
"Well, does he have to be?"

That was the gestation
for Justin to decide,

"Okay, I'm gonna let Han live."

What, are you crazy?

Han is dead, all right?

NARRATOR: Han needed to
become the Lazarus

of illegal street racing

and somehow be resurrected.

"Is there a way for me
to work around the fact

"that I killed him off?"

NARRATOR:
And Justin Lin decided

he could perform the miracle.

He then pulled out
his cell phone,

and called Universal
and told them

he was in for a fourth movie.

NARRATOR: Universal
had Justin Lin booked

to direct the fourth movie.

Justin called me
and said, "All right,

"we're gonna go to another one
with Vin Diesel."

NARRATOR:
The prodigal son had returned

as a star and as a producer,

You ready, kid?

At the end of 3,

the one thought
you have is like,

"Oh, my God, like, Vin's back."

NARRATOR: Vin was in.

You saw what
a galvanizing effect

bringing back Dom
at the end of that film was.

And that really excited
the fans in the audience

for what was going to happen
in the future to the franchise.

NARRATOR: Finally, they were
getting the band back together,

or rather,
organizing the family reunion.

Vin is back.

Paul is back. Whoa!

To have everybody back in 4...

...for the food, for the family.

...I think was the genesis
of the catchphrase "family."

-Family.
-Family.

-Family.
-I know you guys are a family.

BOYD: In the later movies,

Justin Lin, who was
the director for most of those,

everything's thematic.

Nothing really matters
unless you have a code.

The family staying together,

riding together, being together,

the loyalty of it.

It makes you think
of that first movie.

There's all kinds
of family, Brian.

For the fourth movie,
its real purpose

is to give the fans

the sequel they never fully got

to the original film.

NARRATOR: But in welcoming
back Dominic Toretto

and the rest, the script gods
needed to be appeased.

Justin is like,
"Okay, we're going to bring

"the whole beloved
original cast back."

NARRATOR:
But with a little catch.

"Oh, and I'm gonna kill off

"one of the biggest characters
in the franchise."

DOM: There she is.

NARRATOR:
Letty would be sacrificed.

I just remember
Justin telling me early on

that Letty was gonna die.

Justin has never shied away
from a bold choice.

I was like, "Oh, gosh.

"Wow."

He really wanted there to be
emotional stakes in the movie.

And who doesn't love
a good revenge movie?

NARRATOR: Revenge meant
scriptwriter Chris Morgan

had to take us back

to the original
Fast and the Furious.

The idea was
to wrap up the story

of Brian and Dom.

I owe you a ten-second car.

HOLLABAUGH: At the end of
The Fast and the Furious,

Brian gives Dom the car keys,

-he lets him go...
-[ENGINE REVVING]

...and now we've got to
resolve that storyline.

We'll figure it out.

HOLLABAUGH:
Letty is abandoned by Dom

who thinks the police
are about to come in on them.

Eventually, that leads
to her death.

MIA: She's been murdered.

Letty's death
really gives the motivation

for Dom throughout the film.

Sorry I'm late.

Brian still works for the FBI.

We bust the bad guys.

They're brought back together.

Just like old times?

And Dom and Brian,
they have to work together

regardless of their feelings
for each other

to avenge the death of Letty.

NARRATOR: But killing off
a character is a breeze.

The real challenge
is reanimating a dead one.

Han, when they said
were gonna bring him back,

everyone was like,
"How is that going to work?"

NARRATOR: Because there was
no walking this back.

Han is dead, all right?

NARRATOR: The only way
to bring Han back

was to go back in time...

Wow.

...sneaking a little prequel
into the sequel.

All right, we're good to go.

The opening tanker sequence
takes place

before Tokyo Drift.

I thought we'd be
robbing banks by now.

NARRATOR:
That's this explosive scene
in fast forward.

The rest of the movie
takes place after.

Time for you to go
and do your own thing.

NARRATOR:
And pointed to the future

to connect the dots.

Heard they're doing
some crazy shit in Tokyo.

It made Dom
and Han's adventures

a little bit more legendary.

NARRATOR:
The opening was just

what Justin Lin
had always wanted.

Justin, his mission was,

"I want to have
the James Bond opening."

Bond, James Bond.

NARRATOR:
Meaning an overture of action

as spectacular
as it was improbable.

This is major,
massive set pieces,

the likes of which has not been
in the first three movies.

NARRATOR: That put
veteran stunt coordinator

and second unit director,
Mic Rodgers,

back on the front line.

So the whole opening sequence,

that's all second unit,
that's all stuff that I shot.

NARRATOR: And Mic
had a new toy to play with.

Buick's new Regal.

It's trim, it's light,
it's affordable.

NARRATOR:
Well, not a regular Buick.

We built a car backwards,
so it's more controllable.

We could throw a front 180

into the trucks,
drive backwards,

and then dropping her down
on a flying rig

while we're going 60 mph.

It's all real. There's...
There's no CG.

NARRATOR: So real

even the gas tanks needed
their own stunt drivers.

We built steerable tankers...

We got Gene
driving a regular tanker,

and then we got Kenny driving
the self-drive tanker

...where we had a guy
in a tanker

that could actually steer it.

There's been lots of action
in the first three movies,

but this is on
a whole different level.

NARRATOR:
And if you're gonna go big,

why not go massive?

You know, we're suspending
disbelief here a lot.

That was the point
of the series

where it starts to go
to a different direction.

NARRATOR: So much,
this tumbling tanker

could only be made
to happen digitally.

It's CGI
where it flips over the car.

NARRATOR:
But it didn't have to be.

I had it rigged.
I knew how to do it,

but it's like, no,
they didn't wanna do that.

NARRATOR: The finale, however,

that definitely happened
just as Matt Sweeney planned.

When it hits this,

there's going to be
another small explosion,

then the whole thing
is going to be moving.

That crash over the hill.

We did that all for real.

85 gal jugs of gasoline
hit the button.

Huge explosion,

and then the thing
tumbled down the hill on fire.

NARRATOR: While Han
was brought back to life

by going back to the future,

another fan favorite

would be ejected
from the franchise

against her wishes.

NARRATOR:
Fast and the Furious 4

saw a new member
joining the family

when a beauty queen cat
walked into the chaos

as Gisele.

Are you one of those boys

who prefers cars to women?

NARRATOR: Israeli
national treasure, Gal Gadot.

HOLLABAUGH:
She was formerly Miss Israel.

Her background on camera
was extraordinarily limited.

It was her first steps
in Hollywood.

She stood out.

I was not remotely surprised

that she's the one that
Justin went with.

She was in the Army,
so, you know, she brought

a lot to that character

where there was just
a toughness

and a real authenticity.

You could tell that
she could handle action.

All right, everybody, sync up.

NARRATOR: Also new in Fast 4
was the tech.

AUTOMATED VOICE:
Please wait while directions
are downloaded.

NARRATOR:
The street racing was back

and it had moved
with the times.

You know,
I am the voice of GPS.

NARRATOR: Assistant editor
Lee Folsom-Boyd

was leaving her mark.

-AUTOMATED VOICE: Rerouting.
-Just shut up!

That was fun.

AUTOMATED VOICE: You are
2.6 miles from destination.

Had so many people
ask me for GPS directions.

NARRATOR:
Also back for Fast 4

were the franchise's
most trusted stunt drivers.

FOUST: We did
some slides around L.A.

But the thing that struck me
about the fourth film,

it was so much less
about the driving

than the third one
because you did have

these actors that
were carrying the film.

-Are you sure about this?
-Trust me.

NARRATOR: But the old school
Hollywood stunt driving

didn't come cheap.

The race went, like,
$2 million over budget

because it was not
well planned out.

There were three
major action sequences.

The first sequence
and the last sequence

were fully planned out

in advance of shooting,

but the race was not.

A lot of action sequences

are not written in the script
in a detailed way.

[CARS HONKING]

When you're planning
action sequences,

the ideal is to have
everything storyboarded out

before its shooting.

But there were so many
different environments

that chase went through

and that was constantly evolving
through pre-production.

Oh, shit!

And that was
sort of the last time

that Justin shot anything
without having it

completely planned out,

because part of that
had to be shot a couple times.

NARRATOR: Arguably, the most
crucial scene in the movie

also had to be shot twice,

but for very different reasons.

Michelle, she gets killed off
early in the movie.

[GUNSHOT]

She asked that they shoot it
two different ways.

NARRATOR: Michelle Rodriguez
wasn't giving up

her character, Letty,
without a fight.

I don't think she was
incredibly onboard with it,

She was being kind of insistent

that, "I want you to keep
the option open that maybe

"there's a world where
this isn't the end for Letty."

She was like, "You know,
I'm a beloved character."

She was convinced people
aren't going to be happy.

NARRATOR:
But the production

didn't have time
to overthink it

asFast & Furious was heading
south of the border.

Welcome to Mexico, boys.

Towards the end of the schedule,
we went to Magdalena in Mexico.

NARRATOR:
The tiny town in Magdalena

was slowly overtaken
by theFast & Furious circus.

It's been invaded by a crew

over 500 militias.

NARRATOR:
And for a tiny moment in time,

a little bit of Hollywood

and a little bit of Mexico
became one.

The Fast and the Furious,

it speaks to us Latinos

like probably no other
franchise out there.

NARRATOR: And Vin
isn't one to disappoint.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

[CROWD CHEERING]

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

And for the population there
in this little town,

this was a lifetime of an event.

NARRATOR: But Magdalena's
most epic moment.

the chase out of town,
was actually shot

on a California lakebed

with the crew set up for
a never before attempted stunt.

They loaded two Cadillacs
and a Chevy Suburban

with 5 gallon air cannons

and positioned them
on the passenger sides.

The cannons were designed

to fire 800,000 lbs
of air pressure,

which was sure to send the cars
and their drivers tumbling.

You wanna make it
feel dangerous

and at the same time
being completely safe.

NARRATOR: Achieving the former
was the easy part.

Don't get caught behind them,

or you'll never see [BLEEP]
And that's the kill.

NARRATOR:
As for making it safe

while the cannons went off
as expected...

-WOMAN: Boom!
-[ALL LAUGHING]

...there were some
unintended consequences.

We put Tommy Harper
in the hospital,

unfortunately, with the roll.

[MAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]

Do you want to sit down?

NARRATOR:
Luckily, he would be okay.

Things happen that
you don't want to happen,

but it's not 99% sure,
a lot of stuff, you know.

NARRATOR: Thankfully,
the very dangerous chase scene

that followed would be shot
in a completely different way.

It was crazy
the way they did that,

as far as, like, filming it.

NARRATOR:
As the cars went indoors
behind the curtain...

There was a curtain dividing

and, you know,
making the tunnel.

That tunnel sequence,

we did that in a warehouse.

We blew a car up,

T-boned a car right
in the middle of the tunnel.

PRODUCER: Action!

NARRATOR:
Green screen shooting

added the claustrophobic
exhilaration of a tunnel chase.

Action!

The majority
of the visual effects

was that race
through the tunnels,

Heavy, heavy visual effects.

The cars, they had to figure
out how to get it moving.

I think that was challenging.

NARRATOR: When production
wrapped in June 2008,

this became just one of many
visual effects problems

to be solved much quicker
than anyone expected.

Fast & Furiouswas supposed
to come out in July.

NARRATOR:
Multiple editors

attacked the mountain
of footage.

I think we started this
as like a 25-week post,

and then realized that
the visual effects

were gonna take a lot longer.

NARRATOR:
Even with time running out

and the pressure on...

The studio screened
a cut of the movie.

NARRATOR: ...Fast & Furious
was about to become

a victim of its own success.

Universal felt like
this new formula,

these tweaks we've made,

the direction we're taking it in
is clearly working.

And moved the release
of Fastup

from July to April.

NARRATOR:
Which was a full three months
earlier than planned.

And so it meant, you know,

the schedule got
pretty damn hairy.

The visual effects
were such a struggle,

that it just came
right down to the wire.

That was probably

one of the worst
experiences of my life.

NARRATOR: Thanks to
an accelerated release date,

Fast & Furious was truly
becoming exactly that in post.

[GLASS SHATTERING]

No one likes to have time
taken away from them,

especially when you're expecting

you're going to have
several weeks additionally.

NARRATOR: Despite a plethora

of real stunts
and practical effects,

finishing the visual effects

was like making the movie
all over again.

D'AURIA:
It was a very big movie

with a lot of complex
visual effects.

NARRATOR:
But not a lot of time.

You've got to accelerate
your schedule to the nth degree

and have it look really good.

NARRATOR:
And just like the stunts,

post-production feats
of digital daring

would be
pushing the boundaries.

The opening tanker scene

bouncing along on fire,

it was at the limit

of what visual effects
could do at the time.

NARRATOR:
Suddenly, the stunt performers
weren't the only crew

to find themselves
in harm's way.

I have scars from that,
physical and mental scars,

It's Post-Traumatic
Stress Disorder.

The schedule was
seven days a week, 24/7,

whatever it takes,
we're getting this done.

NARRATOR: And that meant
producers and editors

virtually camping at work.

We had worked the cutting room
so many days in a row

that they all ran out
of clothes. [LAUGHS]

They couldn't do laundry,

they were just working,
like, 24/7.

I don't know
how we pulled it off.

But when you're working
for someone who's passionate

and knows where he's going,

you follow him
to the ends of the Earth.

I used to say with Justin that,

you know, "The film
would never be done

"unless you saw dawn
on the last day."

NARRATOR: Justin Lin
emerged into the light

in time for Fast & Furious
to make its release deadline.

Universal felt like
this is going to open

maybe if we're lucky,
mid-55 million,

which, back then,
was a big, big number.

NARRATOR: You could say
April 10th, 2009,

was the day
a franchise was born.

Despite a chaotic upbringing
in a very blended family,

Fast & Furious had finally
found itself four films deep

and about to go much deeper.

I don't think
anyone expected Fast 4

to hit in the way it did.

People were excited
for that movie

in a way that they hadn't been
since the first one.

NARRATOR: The improbable
family reunion of characters

was cheered by all.

Fast 4 was received
exponentially better

than3 or2 had been,

both by fans and critics alike.

Do you know each other?

Fans couldn't believe
that they found a way

to bring Dom and Brian
back together.

He used to date my sister.

HOLLABAUGH:
That both made sense

and was entertaining
and interesting

and kind of
completed their arc.

I ain't running anymore.

What binds
the characters together

and what all the stories
are ultimately based on,

it's their likability
for each other

and their loyalty.

NARRATOR: Made for 85 million,
most expensiveFast movie yet,

took in 70 million
on its opening weekend alone.

At the time, it was
a record-breaking opening,

the highest opening weekend
in April ever.

NARRATOR: And it kept charging
towards $360 million worldwide.

So, it just blew
past the expectations.

NARRATOR:
In a world still reeling

from the global
financial crisis,

it was a triumph over the odds.

It was sweet validation

for everything that Justin did.

It was a massive leap forward
for the franchise,

and that's a big payday
for the studio.

That's the biggest
they had made

off of any of these films
thus far.

It proved that the audience

wanted those original
characters back,

it proved that this makes
a bunch of money.

It was definitely a signal
of things to come.

NARRATOR:
But instead of taking the win
and playing it safe,

Justin and Universal decided
to reinvent the franchise

yet again,

leaving crew members
to think...

This is insane.
This is never gonna work.

[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]