Vin Diesel hints at Paul Walker’s ‘Fast and Furious 11’ return and confirms release date

Posted On June 30, 2025June 30, 2025

During a recent fan event in California, Vin Diesel confirmed the release date for the next instalment of the Fast and Furious franchise and teased the return of Paul Walker’s character Brian O’Conner.

Alongside his co-stars Tyrese Gibson and Cody Walker, Diesel spoke to a crowd of fans at car convention Fuel Fest and revealed that he agreed to release the final movie in 2027 under three conditions.

“First, is to bring the franchise back to LA,” he said, per Variety. “The second thing was to return to the car culture, to the street racing! The third thing was reuniting Dom and Brian O’Conner.”

While he didn’t confirm Walker’s return or clarify how his character would feature in the movie, his character’s latest appearance was in 2015’s Furious 7, in which his face was technologically inserted onto his brother’s body.

Walker died in a car crash in 2013 at the age of 40, after which it was said that his character had retired from the franchise to focus on his family away from the group. However, with Furious 11 being the final instalment, fans are expecting a special return to celebrate his and the franchise’s legacy.

The previous movie, Fast X, was a monumental success, grossing $700million and billed as the first part of a two-part instalment, but the second part was delayed, making it unclear whether 11 will continue the story or serve as a standalone that more broadly brings the saga to an end.

While it’s unclear whether many of the original cast will return for the major send-off, speculation is also brewing about whether the story will see the return of Dwayne Johnson, who seemingly eased long-running tensions with Diesel in 2023 when he referred to his ex-co-star as a “brother”.

This came after he claimed there would be no chance of his return to the franchise in 2021, after which he wrote on social media: “Despite us having our differences, me and Vin, we’ve been like brothers for years.”

During Fuel Fest, Diesel confirmed that he agreed to an April 2027 release date.

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