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An emotional reunion of the original "The Fast and the Furious" cast took center stage at the Cannes Film Festival as actor Vin Diesel paid tribute to late co-star Paul Walker during a special screening marking the film’s 25th anniversary.
Actors Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster joined Diesel at the packed midnight screening of the 2001 street-racing film, where the cast received prolonged applause. The event celebrated the legacy of a franchise that later expanded into 11 films and generated more than $7 billion at the global box office.
The special screening came after Cannes Film Festival chief Thierry Fremaux described "The Fast and the Furious" as a “classic,” saying the franchise had left a lasting mark on cinema history.
Diesel appeared moved by the recognition, reflecting on the significance of hearing such praise at what he described as the world’s most prestigious film festival. Speaking to the audience, he highlighted how meaningful it was for a movie released 25 years ago to be recognized in Cannes in such a way.
“To come with a film, that you, the head of the most prestigious film festival in the world, where every artist in the world wants to be recognised, that you are calling this film we did 25 years ago a classic, how profound is that?” Diesel said.
The screening was added late to this year’s Cannes program, giving the festival one of its few major Hollywood moments in an edition otherwise shaped largely by independent and auteur cinema.
Much of the evening focused on the memory of Paul Walker, Diesel’s longtime co-star, who died in a car crash in 2013.
Walker’s daughter, actress and model Meadow Rain Walker, joined the cast in Cannes and shared a long embrace with Diesel on the red carpet before the screening.
Inside the theater, Diesel said Meadow Rain Walker had encouraged him not to attend alone in representing the spirit of brotherhood associated with the franchise.
“The person who was not going to let me come alone here, to represent that brotherhood, was Meadow Rain,” Diesel said, before adding, “I’m going to go shed a tear real quick.”
"The Fast and the Furious" screening also stood out because major Hollywood studios largely avoided Cannes this year.
Studios including Disney, Sony and Warner, alongside streaming companies Netflix and Amazon, reportedly decided against launching films at the 2026 festival. According to the festival context, reasons included cost-cutting, a stronger focus on tightly managed social media-driven campaigns and concerns over negative reactions from Cannes critics.
The screening of "The Fast and the Furious," owned by Universal, helped bring some Hollywood presence back to the festival.
Meanwhile, Diesel revealed earlier this week that Universal is adapting the film's concept into a television series, although no release timeline has been announced.
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