The Fast & the Furious is so much more than a movie franchise – it's a global phenomenon spanning nine soon-to be ten movies (counting Hobbs & Shaw) and a global box office gross in excess of more than $5 billion, with every passing sequel proving to be bigger and better (well, somewhat) than the last. From gravity-defying Abu Dhabi skyscraper jumps to high-speed submarine chases over frozen Russian terrain; nothing is off limits in the world of Fast & Furious, a 'Car Wars' saga that feels like it comes from a galaxy far, far away and is all the better for it. And yet few could have predicted that, back in 2001, a movie about the world of underground street racing, fronted by two relative unknowns, would have led to this.
Then again, nothing should surprise us about the Fast & Furious saga anymore. and that includes the incredible array of big names that came within a whisker of featuring in the franchise. Would any of the following taken Dom Toretto’s "family" down a different track? Read on and decide for yourself.
Paul Walker was not the first choice for Brian O'Conner
Even though Paul Walker is sorely missed his casting in the first movie almost didn't happen. Before Walker signed on for the role of Brian O'Conner, other names considered were Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale and Eminem. When casting began for The Fast and the Furious, Eminem was coming off of two major studio albums, "The Slim Shady LP" and "The Marshall Mathers LP." Other than music videos and small cameos, the rapper didn't have much acting under his belt. That didn't stop the studio from wanting a big name attached to the project. It's unclear if Eminem was ever offered the role of Brian, but Walker took the role and Eminem's focus was shifted to the autobiographical film, 8 Mile. Eminem probably had no idea that the franchise would last for two decades and it's unclear if he would have wanted to participate that long. With 8 Mile, he found another outlet for his creativity. As for Walhberg, he would have been a good addition to the series.
Timothy Olyphant was the studio's first choice for Dominic Toretto
Originally the actor who the producers and writers had in mind for Dominic Toretto was Timothy Olyphant. However the actor declined the role and instead Vin Diesel won the role and the rest is history.
Mia was originally written for Eliza Dushku 
Having made her name as ass-kicking good-girl-gone-bad Faith on Buffy The Vampire Slayer and with an attitude-laden turn in the criminally-underrated teen comedy Bring It On, Eliza Dushku was enjoying something of a moment around the turn of the millennium – and the writers behind The Fast and The Furious looked to capitalize on it. Writing up the part of Mia Toretto, Dom’s feisty younger sister and love interest of Brian O'Conner, according to Entertainment Tonight, they saw only had one actress in mind for the role: Dushku.There was just one problem: Dushku disagreed. The role eventually went to Jordanna Brewster, best known for Robert Rodriguez’s The Faculty at the time, with Dushku returning to the role of Faith in Angel and later starring in the TV series Tru Calling and Dollhouse.
Ja Rule was meant to appear in "2 Fast 2 Furious" instead of Ludacris
Arguably the biggest tale of woe and regret to come out of the franchise concerns forgotten rapper Ja Rule, who must surely look at the Fast & the Furious movies with a sense of regret. Cast in the bit part role of Edwin in the first movie, 2 Fast 2 Furious director John Singleton revealed in an interview with Grantland that Ja Rule had had the opportunity to play the part of Tej Parker in the second movie with a major pay rise – but said no. After being yanked around too much by the rapper, Singleton turned to Ludacris, who's since gone on to star in three additional franchise outings (for which he's surely pulling in well over a half mil at this point).
Channing Tatum almost appeared in the franchise
Without Lucas Black, the role of Sean Boswell could have been very different. A few years back, during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Channing Tatum revealed he had been up for the part, only to blow it in the audition. “I don’t even know if it was — I blocked it out, mainly so I don’t remember the specifics. I think it was a combination of me being just bad, not remembering the lines, totally freaking out, I was probably sweating a lot,” he said. Tatum still ranks it as his worst audition, but that didn't stop him from being a Hollywood A-lister. Then again he wouldn't be a bad addition to the franchise.
The role of Hobbs was originally intended for somebody else
The addition of Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, baby oil and all, as Luke Hobbs in Fast Five was the shot in the arm the franchise needed after 2009’s Fast & Furious. Yet in the original plans for the fifth series outing, Vin Diesel and the film’s writers had designs on Tommy Lee Jones for the part. Jones had won an Oscar as US Marshall Samuel Gerard, the man on the tail of Harrison Ford’s Dr. Richard Kimble in The Fugitive, and he seemed a natural fit for what amounted to a similar role.
While Tommy Lee Jones was the ideal choice for the role of Luke Hobbs in Fast Five, the producers were also eyeing up Brolin for the part at the time, and given his performance as a no-nonsense DEA agent in Sicario, you could see why he would have been a good fit in the role. That said, Vin Diesel’s fans thought otherwise, lobbying hard for Dwayne Johnson to get the part, even if it meant rewriting much of what they had planned for the character. Brolin definitely would have been a good match for Vin Diesel’s Dom Toretto in any fight, though.
Several actors were considered for Furious 7
Before "Furious 7" entered production in 2013, several names including Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone, Twilight actor Taylor Lautner and Academy Award winners Halle Berry and Denzel Washington were all reportedly offered role. Padukone, who later went on to star alongside Vin Diesel and Tony Jaa in 2017's "xXx: Return of Xander Cage" was said to have been offered the role of hacker Ramsey and turned it down. Berry was a suggestion by cast member Tyrese Gibson as a potential love interest for Roman, but she could have been a female version of Kurt Russell's character. And finally Denzel Washington was said to have been offered the role of Mr. Nobody, but turned it down, but still I want Denzel to join the franchise any day now.
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