The Fast and the Furious 2001 cast is led by Paul Walker as Brian O'Conner and Vin Diesel as Dominic Toretto, with Michelle Rodriguez as Letty Ortiz and Jordana Brewster as Mia Toretto. Rick Yune plays Johnny Tran, and Chad Lindberg, Johnny Strong and Matt Schulze play Jesse, Leon and Vince in the supporting cast. Rob Cohen directed the film, which opened in US theaters on June 22, 2001. Ted Levine plays Sgt. Tanner, Thom Barry plays Agent Bilkins, Vyto Ruginis plays Harry and Ja Rule appears as Edwin. TMDB lists 31 roles in all, including Rob Cohen as an uncredited Pizza Hut delivery guy and producer Neal H. Moritz as a Ferrari driver. This cast started the saga, and Walker, Diesel and Brewster were back together ten years later in Fast Five (2011), directed by Justin Lin. The part of Letty was expanded after Michelle Rodriguez was cast.
| # | Actor | Character |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Walker | Brian O'Conner |
| 2 | Vin Diesel | Dominic Toretto |
| 3 | Michelle Rodriguez | Letty Ortiz |
| 4 | Jordana Brewster | Mia Toretto |
| 5 | Rick Yune | Johnny Tran |
| 6 | Chad Lindberg | Jesse |
| 7 | Johnny Strong | Leon |
| 8 | Matt Schulze | Vince |
| 9 | Ja Rule | Edwin |
| 10 | Ted Levine | Sgt. Tanner |
| 11 | Thom Barry | Agent Bilkins |
| 12 | Vyto Ruginis | Harry |
| 13 | Stanton Rutledge | Muse |
| 14 | Noel Gugliemi | Hector |
| 15 | R.J. de Vera | Danny Yamato |
| 16 | Beau Holden | Ted Gassner |
| 17 | Reggie Lee | Lance Nguyen |
| 18 | David Douglas | Rasta Racer |
| 19 | Peter Navy Tuiasosopo | Samoan Guard |
| 20 | Neal H. Moritz | Ferrari Driver |
| 21 | Doria Anselmo | Ferrari Passenger |
| 22 | Glenn K. Ota | Johnny's Father |
| 23 | F. Valentino Morales | Dispatcher |
| 24 | Mike White | Night Truck Driver |
Billing order from the film's credits (TMDB). Actors with a Cinvibe page and characters with a character page are linked.
Also in the cast: Delphine Pacific (Racer's Edge Clerk), Monica Tamayo (Monica), Megan Baker (Gimel), Tammy Monica Gegamian (Edwin's Babe), Rob Cohen (Pizza Hut Delivery Guy (uncredited)), Kevin Smith (Big Rig Driver (uncredited)), Felicia Tang (Hot Chick (uncredited)).
Paul Walker plays Brian O'Conner in The Fast and the Furious, the young undercover cop sent into the Los Angeles street racing scene to find out who is behind a string of big rig thefts. In a 2013 Entertainment Weekly interview quoted by SlashFilm, Walker said he signed on before there was a screenplay. The studio's production notes give his answer to the offer as "Count me in!"
Vin Diesel plays Dominic Toretto in The Fast and the Furious, a respected street racer who runs a crew and a family cafe in Los Angeles. The production notes say Rob Cohen cast him after Pitch Black and Boiler Room. Diesel told the production that in college he had a GSX-R that he drove at very high speeds on the Belt Parkway, and that he was "in love with the liberty that speed can give you."
Michelle Rodriguez plays Letty Ortiz, Dom's girlfriend, in The Fast and the Furious. According to the production notes, an agent sent Rob Cohen to see her in Girlfight, and the team expanded the role once they had seen what she could do. TheWrap reports that Letty was not written as a leading part at first, and that Cohen added a romance between Letty and Dom after Rodriguez joined the cast.
Jordana Brewster plays Mia Toretto, Dom's sister, who grows close to Brian in The Fast and the Furious. In the production notes, Rob Cohen says she had just finished her freshman year at Yale when she was cast. Brewster had never driven a car, so she took Driver's Ed in New York to get her license for the film.
Rick Yune plays Johnny Tran, the dangerous rival in the Los Angeles racing world of The Fast and the Furious. He is billed fifth in the TMDB credits, right after the four leads. Rob Cohen cast him personally and, in the production notes, describes him as having "a very visual, charismatic screen presence." Yune said in the same notes that he was thrilled to get the role.
Chad Lindberg plays Jesse in The Fast and the Furious, and the production notes list him in the supporting cast alongside Matt Schulze and Johnny Strong. TMDB credits show he came to the film after supporting roles in Mercury Rising (1998) and October Sky (1999). He went on to The Rookie (2002) and The Last Samurai (2003).
Johnny Strong plays Leon in The Fast and the Furious. TMDB credits show he had two big films in 2001, this one and Black Hawk Down, where he played Shughart. He is also a musician, and TMDB says he founded the band Operator. He later composed original music for films including Warhorse One (2023), in which he also acted as Master Chief Richard Mirko.
Matt Schulze plays Vince in The Fast and the Furious. TheWrap reports that he looked so bloodied in one scene that Rob Cohen trimmed the graphic shots to satisfy the MPAA. He came back later in the saga, and TMDB credits him as Vince again in Fast Five (2011), directed by Justin Lin.
Ja Rule plays Edwin, one of the street racers in The Fast and the Furious. The production notes say the hip hop artist joined the cast just before his album Rule 3:36 came out. He had already starred in Turn It Up, and at the time he said he was working to master music and acting together.
Ted Levine plays Sgt. Tanner in The Fast and the Furious, one of the law enforcement figures pressing Brian for results on the hijacking case. Levine had a long screen career before this film. TMDB credits him as Jame Gumb in The Silence of the Lambs (1991), as Bosko in Heat (1995) and in Wild Wild West (1999).
Thom Barry plays Agent Bilkins in The Fast and the Furious, one of the officials pushing Brian to close the truck hijacking case. TMDB credits him as Agent Bilkins again in 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), directed by John Singleton, where he is billed seventh and appears alongside Paul Walker.
Vyto Ruginis plays Harry in The Fast and the Furious and is billed twelfth in the TMDB credits. TMDB says he was born in Wolverhampton, England. His film credits include The Devil's Advocate, Cliffhanger, Broken Arrow and Moneyball, and he later had a recurring role as Arkady Kolcheck across 29 episodes of NCIS: Los Angeles.
Director Rob Cohen and producer Neal H. Moritz put together the cast, and TMDB credits Ronna Kress with the casting. The story came from "Racer X", a 1998 Vibe magazine article by Kenneth Li. Paul Walker told Entertainment Weekly in 2013 that he joined without a screenplay. According to the studio's production notes, Cohen cast Vin Diesel after Pitch Black and Boiler Room. Michelle Rodriguez reached Cohen through Girlfight, and her part grew once she was cast. TheWrap reports that Letty was not first written as a lead. Jordana Brewster was cast just after her freshman year at Yale.
Most of the preparation was driving practice. The cast, the director, the producers and anyone driving on or off camera trained at a driving school in Las Vegas, including time in open wheel race cars. Brewster and Rodriguez had no licenses before the film, and Rodriguez said that the instructors would not let them go faster than 80 miles per hour. Filming started in late July in a Dodger Stadium parking lot. The rest of the film is covered on the fast and the furious 2001 page.
Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Jordana Brewster, Thom Barry and Matt Schulze all came back in later films of the saga, according to TMDB credits. The Fast and the Furious (2001) is the first film in the franchise, so nobody returns from an earlier entry. In 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), directed by John Singleton, Paul Walker is back as Brian O'Conner and Thom Barry returns as Agent Bilkins. Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster are not in that film's credits.
By Fast Five (2011), directed by Justin Lin, TMDB credits show Vin Diesel, Paul Walker and Jordana Brewster back in their original roles. Matt Schulze also returns as Vince, and Michelle Rodriguez appears as Letty in uncredited archive footage. Rick Yune, Chad Lindberg, Johnny Strong and Ted Levine are not credited in either of those two sequels. For a film by film view of the series, see the guide to the fast and furious movies.
| Director | Rob Cohen |
|---|---|
| Writers | Gary Scott Thompson, Erik Bergquist, David Ayer |
| Producers | Neal H. Moritz |
| Music | BT |
| Cinematography | Ericson Core |
Paul Walker played Brian O'Conner in The Fast and the Furious (2001). Brian is the undercover cop who goes into the Los Angeles street racing scene, and Walker is billed first in the TMDB credits. He told Entertainment Weekly in 2013 that he signed on before there was a screenplay. He played Brian again in 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) and Fast Five (2011).
Vin Diesel played Dominic Toretto in The Fast and the Furious, the first film, which opened on June 22, 2001. Dom is a respected racer who runs a crew and a family cafe in Los Angeles. The studio's production notes say Rob Cohen cast Diesel after seeing his work in Pitch Black and Boiler Room.
Michelle Rodriguez played Letty Ortiz in The Fast and the Furious (2001). The production notes say Rob Cohen saw her in Girlfight and expanded the role because of her. TheWrap reports that Letty was not first written as a lead, and that Cohen added a romance between Letty and Dom after Rodriguez was cast.
Yes, Ja Rule is in The Fast and the Furious (2001), billed ninth as Edwin, one of the street racers. The production notes say he joined the cast just before his album Rule 3:36 came out. He had already starred in Turn It Up before taking this supporting part.
Johnny Tran, played by Rick Yune, is the main rival in The Fast and the Furious. Rob Cohen described Yune as having "a very visual, charismatic screen presence." The film's central mystery is who is behind the truck hijackings, the case the police and the FBI press Brian to solve.
No, the whole cast did not return for 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003). TMDB credits show Paul Walker back as Brian O'Conner and Thom Barry as Agent Bilkins. Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster are not in that film's credits. Diesel and Brewster returned with Walker in Fast Five (2011), and Matt Schulze came back as Vince.
Hotwheels Fast Furious products for Australian collectors include 1:64 scale cars, five packs and Premium releases.
The Nissan Skyline Too Fast Too Furious car is Brian O’Conner’s silver R34 GT-R.
The Fast and Furious Honda S2000 appeared in black for Johnny Tran and was repainted pink for Suki.
The cars from Fast & Furious 7 include Dom's Dodge Charger, Brian's Subaru WRX STI, Letty's Dodge Challenger, Roman's Chevrolet Camaro and Tej's Jeep Rubicon X.
The Mona Lisa in Tokyo Drift is Han Lue's Nissan Silvia S15, which Sean Boswell damages during his first attempt at drifting.
The Fast Furious Honda Civic is a 1993 Honda Civic EJ1 identified as the heist car used by Dominic Toretto in The Fast and the Furious (2001), directed by Rob Cohen.