The Fast & Furious franchise has become one of the most popular action franchises of all time. Originally, the franchise started with street races, but over time shifted its focus towards heists, espionage, and stunts that literally defy all physics and logic. Nonetheless, the underlying theme has always been about family. The expensive cars and action set pieces were always second to Dom's crew, who were the real driving force behind the Fast & Furious movies. The characters have won over the hearts of many, getting the fans to tune in to sequel after sequel.

Updated July 2, 2023: This article has been updated following the release of Fast X and news of a new Fast & Furious spin-off film with Dwayne Johnson.

Critical reception was seldom positive, especially as the franchise continued, but that never stopped Fast & Furious from resonating with the fans, and the franchise was never afraid to go bigger with each installment. Normal street racing in cars on the ground in the previous movie? Well, it's time for cars hooked to helicopters in the next. Originally it was believed that the upcoming Fast & Furious 11 would be the final film in the franchise, star Vin Diesel has teased it being a trilogy of films while it was confirmed Dwayne Johnson will return in Fast & The Furious Presents: Hobbs and Reyes, which described as Fast and Furious 10.5 and will bridge the gap between the 10th and 11th entries. With that in mind, here is every film in the Fast & Furious franchise ranked.

11 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)

The first sequel in the Fast & Furious franchise was not great. Dominic Toretto was absent for the film's entire runtime, with 2 Fast 2 Furious instead focusing on Brian O'Conner and the newly introduced Roman Pearce. The two went undercover when they were tasked with stopping a drug lord. Unfortunately, the story was not particularly engaging and failed to impress. While it introduced characters like Roman and Tej to the franchise and was directed by the late great John Singelton, 2 Fast 2 Furious is really only notable for its iconic title.

10 Fast & Furious (2009)

After Brian O'Conner and Dominic Toretto were separated for two films following the original, they were finally reunited in Fast & Furious. For the film that shared the name of the franchise, Fast & Furious was one of the more forgettable entries. It was never a franchise-defining film, but it did begin pushing the franchise into more "action movie" territory. Fast & Furious acted as a bridge between the earlier street-racing-focused films and the later installments that focused more on the heists. But it stumbled and felt relatively dull and generic.

9 The Fate of the Furious (2017)

The Fate of the Furious turned Dom against his team and forced him to work for the cyberterrorist known as Cipher. It was an unnecessary film that did not need to release so soon after the superior Furious 7. Aside from some solid action, there was not much else the movie had going for it. Jason Statham's character, Deckard Shaw, was moved from a villainous role to a more heroic one. While a redemptive story was welcome, here it was not done that well. For a franchise centered on family, Dom's crew welcomed Shaw too quickly after Shaw had seemingly killed one of its long-time members.

8 The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift was the third entry in the franchise and was responsible for causing mass disruption to the series timeline. Tokyo Drift killed off fan-favorite Han, forcing Fast & Furious, Fast Five, and Fast & Furious 6 to be set before the third film so that Han could appear in those movies. The Toretto crew were absent from Tokyo Drift except for Han and Dom in a cameo role. The film distinguished itself from other installments by focusing on an aspiring racer in high school, but the character was not very likable.

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7 Hobbs & Shaw (2019)

Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham teamed up for the first Fast & Furious spin-off film; Hobbs & Shaw. Fans who liked the two actors and went into the film not expecting races generally had a good time. The two leading actors had surprising chemistry not only with each other but with Idris Elba's superhuman villain and Hattie Shaw (played by Vanessa Kirby). Hobbs & Shaw might not have been groundbreaking or been for everyone, but it was a well-made, straightforward action flick starring two major movie stars. It will be interesting to see how it factors into the overall Fast & Furious franchise now that Dwayne Johnson will return as Hobbs in a spin-off film that is not a sequel to Hobbs and Shaw.

6 F9: The Fast Saga (2021)

F9 was like a movie sprung from a child's imagination who loved to play with toy cars. It was heavily criticized for its high level of disconnect from reality. F9 even seated Tej and Roman in a rocket car and launched them into space. Ultimately, one's enjoyment of F9 depended on how silly they wanted Fast & Furious to be. But the movie was bloated and pushed things too far, surpassing limits even for the Fast & Furious franchise. Yet it is hard to deny in 2021, after a long time away from the movies due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was a nice welcome back.

5 Fast X (2023)

The latest film in the franchise, Fast X, is one for the diehard fans who are looking for a good, if not ridiculous, time. The plot is wild and fast-paced, but it still feels ever so slightly more routed in reality than F9. Dom's team faces a new danger when they are targeted by Dante Reyes, played by Jason Momoa. This time, it isn't just Dom who cares about family. Dante seeks revenge for his father, and he's willing to do whatever it takes to get it.

The film has received mixed reviews, with many pointing out that the writing is bizarre and full of wild stunts that would make any physics teacher cry. However, it is sort of an unspoken rule at this point that everyone who goes to see the newest release is there to see just how many cars dramatically drive away from explosions. With that said, Momoa's performance was praised by many as being quite fun to watch, even with the writing behind it. Fast X certainly delivers on the demand for big action and theatrics the franchise is known for.

4 The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Released in 2001, The Fast and the Furious was where the franchise all began. Brian, Dom, Letty, and Mia were all introduced in this first film and were great characters from the very beginning. But The Fast and the Furious marked a point in the franchise where it needed time to truly hit its stride. The movie was very stylistically different from the other films in the franchise, being much more realistic and smaller in scale. Dom's crew were Los Angeles street racers who stole VCR TVs and DVD players, not super spies that went to space.

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3 Fast & Furious 6 (2013)

Justin Lin directed a massively entertaining action film with Fast & Furious 6. It had fantastic car chases, explosions, great humor, a likable cast, and a strong villain in Owen Shaw. The action sequences were simultaneously ridiculous and awesome, including hand-to-hand combat in subway stations, a tank rolling through a highway, and Dom's crew chasing down a plane in the film's final act. By the sixth film in the franchise, most viewers recognized that the films required significant suspension of disbelief. The runway at the end of Fast & Furious 6 was probably the longest runway in cinematic history.

2 Furious 7 (2015)

The highest-grossing Fast film was also one of the highest-rated films in the franchise. Furious 7 did not bring much new to the table, but it did everything the franchise was known for incredibly well. The action set pieces were impressive, supported by an excellent script that allowed the chemistry of its cast to shine through. With Furious 7, James Wan proved he was the perfect choice for the director's chair on the seventh installment. Furious 7 has been remembered for its emotional tribute to Paul Walker.

1 Fast Five (2011)

Fast Five was, first and foremost, a heist action film, marking a significant departure from the franchise's racing roots. There was only one car race in the entire film. Dominic Toretto and Brian O'Conner called in their crew to steal hundreds of millions of dollars from a corrupt businessman and drug lord. On the crew's tail was the newly introduced Agent Luke Hobbs. The heist led to cars dragging a vault through the city streets of Rio, smashing the cars of the pursuers that got in its way.

Fast Five gave itself permission to be dramatically over the top (but not too much) and only benefited from it. It redefined the franchise and is the high mark the series constantly returns to. It is so iconic it becomes the main point of flashback for the recently released Fast X.