Fast and furious, with an eye on China

Action star and producer Vin Diesel promotes the film in Beijing. Jiang Dong / China Daily

The movie star later expanded on these comments in an interview with China Daily.

"The idea of an actor from China being in part of the Fast saga feels inevitable," he says.

"As the producer, I am proud the saga is multicultural. The first thing I did after I became producer of the franchise (from Fast and Furious 4) was to break down racial lines, take all of them and create a family.

"When I was a kid, I used to play Dungeons and Dragons. In many ways, that affects the way that I produce movies. It's just a matter of time for the audience going down the hall toward China," Diesel explains, somewhat mysteriously.

He says there are subtle hints in previous episodes that the story is leading to China.

"Audiences appreciate it when movies speak to each other and answer unanswered questions, even from a movie that is 10 years old."

Taiwan-born American Justin Lin directed Fast and Furious 3, 4, 5 and 6. The new film was directed by James Wan, an ethnic Chinese director born in Malaysia, best known for his film Saw (2004).

"The next director I am going to work with will be Ang Lee, who is one of my favorite directors from the last 10 years," Diesel says.

Michelle Rodriguez, the lead actress from the beginning of the series, says: "No one expects such a multicultural cast to survive in a franchise for so long. For me, it's a great gift."

Her role was "dead" in the fourth episode but returned in the sixth after demands from fans on social media.

"Fast and Furious is generally about action and explosions, but subtle emotion is also added," Rodriguez says.