Nobody goes into a new Fast & Furious movie expecting such things as logic, common sense, or any sort of strict adherence to reality. So barely an eyelid was batted when it was revealed that John Cena was playing Jakob Toretto, the long-lost brother of Vin Diesel’s Dom.
In keeping with the franchise’s increasingly far-fetched plot developments, despite never having been mentioned once before in a series that dates back 20 years, seven sequels, and a spinoff to date, Jakob has returned to wreak both havoc and vengeance on his estranged siblings. In a hugely coincidental stroke of luck, he’s also very well placed to do it having become a precision driver, expert thief and infamous assassin during his exile from the family barbecues, all while being trapped in the gigantic oversized body of a professional wrestler.
In a new interview, Cena shed some light on why Jakob has never been seen or heard from across the entirety of The Fast Saga, despite Diesel’s determination to use the word “family” so often that you’d think he’s getting paid a bonus every time he grumbles it.
“First and foremost, how, how does this happened? Why are we finding out about it now? What’s the importance of this character? What would make you make such a bold decision to attach the name Toretto to a character that’s invited in the ninth installment? Why haven’t you looked at this before? All of these questions that are answered in F9 are the general legitimate questions that not only I had, but Justin Lin and Vin had as well.
The cool thing is you’re talking to two of the deepest mythology geeks on Fast and Furious about these questions and they give you these really detailed answers that you’re like, ‘Yeah. Okay. All right. I now have direction. I can move forth and perform’. It was actually really fun to talk about because you don’t have to create Jakob from scratch because his last name is Toretto, but you can explore an infinite amount of story points.”
The much shorter answer would be that it fits the narrative, and it’s not as if the gang can go up against corrupt businessmen and elite criminals every time they reunite, as has become the recurring theme of the big bads. While Cena’s character does tick one of those boxes, the familial connection also ties it directly to the overarching theme of the Fast & Furious universe, so it’s about as smart a storytelling decision as you’d expect from a property that’s long since abandoned any notion of being set in a world that resembles our own in any way.