Jason Statham, Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel reportedly have contracts in place to ensure they don’t lose fights on the set of The Fast and the Furious.
The Wall Street Journal claims that the on-set tension between the ‘alpha male’ cast is so extreme that they have choreographed fights to ensure that one actor ‘doesn’t land more blows than the other’ in a bid to protect their ‘tender egos.’
The franchise’s crew members have claimed that Diesel, 52, invited his sister to rehearsals to count how many times he got punched so he could ‘get his licks back in’, while Statham, 52, has an agreement with the studio which limits how badly he is beaten by the others on set.
‘Alpha males’: Jason Statham, Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel reportedly have contracts in place to ensure they don’t lose fights on the set of The Fast and the Furious
Producers of the popular action films, which first began in 2001, have reportedly spilled the beans on the male leads’ strong desire to not look weak for the sake of ‘vanity’ during their battle scenes.
And it has now been claimed by those working on the franchise that the effects of the actors’ demands are clear to see.
One example was in a scene in 2011’s Fast Five which saw Vin shove Dwayne, 47, through a wall – who got up in a matter of seconds to propel Diesel through another wall in an act of sweet revenge.
A few years later in 2017’s The Fate of the Furious, Dwayne was reportedly left furious that he was knocked down to the ground by Vin and demanded to at least sit up so the beating didn’t look too extreme.
MailOnline has contacted Universal Pictures, as well as representatives for Jason Stathan, Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel for further comment.
Egos: The WSJ claims that the tension between the ‘alpha male’ cast is so extreme that they have choreographed fights to ensure that one actor ‘doesn’t land more blows than the other’
Contracts in place: Statham, 52, (L) reportedly has an agreement with the studio which limits how badly he is beaten by the others on set
The Fate of The Furious trailer shows the fast family divided
In another example reportedly provided by postproduction crew members, Vin roped in his sister on set during a fight rehearsal, who once observed: ‘He’s falling down right here. Is he going to get his licks back in?’
In another instance, an intense scene in Furious 7’s could have seen either Statham or Johnson being killed.
But both the actors’ creative input saw neither succumbing to such fate after the scene saw them stop fighting with a helicopter fired a missile and got rid of the ground between them.
The claims appear to be backed from 2016 when Dwayne took to Instagram to call out some of his co-stars as ‘candy a**es*.
Stories: The franchise’s crew members have claimed that Diesel, 52, once invited his sister to rehearsals to count how many times he got punched so he could ‘get his licks back in’
Reports: On one occasion, Dwayne (R) was reportedly furious that he was knocked down to the ground by Vin and demanded to at least sit up so the beating didn’t look too extreme
He further added in the then cryptic post: ‘When you watch this movie next April and it seems like I’m not acting in some of these scenes and my blood is legit boiling -you’re right.’
Soon after Vin told USA Today: ‘It’s not always easy being an alpha. And it’s two alphas.’
Fast & Furious is the latest in the film franchise and is the first spin-off.
Tense: Producers of the action films have reportedly spilled the beans on the male leads’ strong desire to not look weak for the sake of ‘vanity’ during their battle scenes
Time for some ‘Samoan a-whooping!” in ‘Hobbs & Shaw’ trailer
The film is directed by David Leitch (Deadpool 2) from a script by longtime Fast & Furious narrative architect Chris Morgan.
The film is produced by Morgan, Johnson, Statham and Hiram Garcia. The executive producers are Dany Garcia, Kelly McCormick, Steven Chasman, Ethan Smith and Ainsley Davies.
Other actors in the movie include Helen Mirren, Eiza Gonzalez, Eddie Marsan, Roman Reigns and Cliff Curtis.
Tense: Vin previously told USA Today: ‘It’s not always easy being an alpha. And it’s two alphas’
The Rock attends Hobbs and Shaw premiere with Lauren Hashian