The Fast and Furious franchise continues to be a global phenomenon, just not as much as you might think in the United States. Fast Xthe latest film in the franchise and the first installment of the series finale, debuted May 19 in the US to a lukewarm reception, grossing just $67.5 million over the opening weekend. But the rest of the world welcomed the Fast Family’s latest adventure with open arms, taking it to a massive $319 million opening worldwide.
While its domestic opening wasn’t as impressive, it placed fifth for the year behind the Mario movie, both new Marvel movies, and John Wick 4, the international opening is a completely different story. The total of $319 million earned internationally Fast X the second-biggest opening of the year, behind only the Mario movie’s massive $377 million.
As much as the Fast and Furious franchise is seen as a guaranteed blockbuster with every new entry, this trend toward the international rather than domestic box office isn’t too surprising. These movies have always been bigger hits abroad, and with the big exception of Furious 7the last film starring Paul Walker, the series’ recent entries have tended to surpass outside of the United States.
One thing that remains a bit unclear is exactly how many fast-paced movies are left in the franchise. While we know that Fast X is technically the first part of the finale, we don’t know if it will conclude with one more entry, or that Fast X becomes a trilogy. Since the next movie isn’t due out until sometime in 2025, there’s probably no real answer to this question for a while, and it will depend on how it performs at the box office. If Fast X continues to do well both in the US and abroad, it’s likely we could have two more Fast and Furious movies before the series is over. However, if the drop in week two is huge, it’s possible the series will end after that Fast X part two.