The Rock May Not Return for ‘Fast X’ Due to Fight with Vin Diesel ?? OMG

The Fast and the Furious may be all about high-octane action and family on-screen, but off of it, there’s been some drama brewing between two of the franchise’s heavy hitters: Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel.

The latter’s Dom Toretto has been the engine of the series since its first installment back in 2001, but Johnson’s arrival as Hobbs injected some fuel into a franchise that was arguably in danger of stalling out.

So while the two titans’ off-screen disagreements added a bit of realism to their characters’ contentious nature back in 2011’s Fast Five, it’s more than complicated the production process since then. So much so, in fact, that Johnson may not return for the franchise’s next main installment.

The feud confirmation and earnest answer to what comes next for Johnson and the Fast and Furious franchise was just one small part of an excellent, must-read, in-depth interview with Rolling Stone’s Josh Eells as a bit of movie marketing for the upcoming Rampage film. If you’re a fan of Johnson, I can’t recommend it enough, but if you just want to know about the latest bit of drama in the Johnson v. Diesel feud, read on.

When it came to most recent production, The Fate of the Furious, Johnson and Diesel did indeed shoot their scenes separately:

“That is correct. We were not in any scenes together.”

So what exactly went down?

“Vin and I had a few discussions, including an important face-to-face in my trailer, and what I came to realize is that we have a fundamental difference in philosophies on how we approach moviemaking and collaborating. It took me some time, but I’m grateful for that clarity. Whether we work together again or not.”

Looking ahead to the ninth installment in the Fast and Furious franchise, and whether or not Johnson will return for that film, is a step too far at the moment:

“I’m not quite sure. Right now I’m concentrating on making the spinoff [Hobbs and Shaw] as good as it can be, but I wish him all the best, and I harbor no ill will there, just because of the clarity we have…Actually, you can erase that last part about ‘no ill will.’ We’ll just keep it with the clarity.”

Johnson’s just gotta get that last punch in, which is probably the way this brawl would go down in the real world. (Is it too soon to sign Johnson to play the starring role of One Punch Man?) Take to the comments to let us know who you think wins this one!