Summary

  • Fast X introduces an exciting new villain in Dante Reyes, who is seeking revenge against Dom for stealing his father's vault.
  • The Fast & Furious franchise has a trend of redeeming its villains, with characters like Vince, Luke Hobbs, Deckard Shaw, and Jakob Toretto ing Dom's crew.
  • Fast X breaks this trend by revealing Aimes, a previously trusted member of Dom's team, as a double agent for Dante, providing a refreshing plot twist and keeping audiences guessing about characters' loyalties in Fast & Furious 11.

The Fast & Furious franchise has struggled with one major villain problem, but Fast X ingeniously flips the trend on its head. The 2023 movie introduces Dom's biggest threat yet: Dante Reyes, who is out for revenge after Dom stole his father's vault in Fast Five. Fast X had a mixed reception (via Rotten Tomatoes), but Dante was universally praised and many believed he was the series' most exciting villain. However, despite being a refreshing antagonist, the Fast & Furious franchise has found itself trapped in a trend that repeats itself with every movie. Almost every Fast & Furious villain has redeemed themselves and ed Dom's crew.

This trend dates back to 2011's Fast Five, as Vince, an antagonist in The Fast and the Furious who never trusted Brian, becomes a hero and even sacrifices himself. This continued in almost every consecutive movie, as Luke Hobbs, who might not be an outright villain but was tasked with hunting down Dom, ed the family in Fast & Furious 6. Deckard Shaw quickly turned a new leaf in Fate of the Furious as well, as did Jakob Toretto in F9. Fast X even saw the series' overarching villain, Cipher, working with Letty.

Fast X's Aimes Flips Fast & Furious' Redeemed Villain Obsession

Tess and Aimes stand next to each other in Fast X

Fast X completely subverted this issue through a major twist involving Aimes. Aimes turning out to be a villain all along is essentially the reverse of what the franchise has been doing with characters like Cypher, Jakob, and Shaw for years. Aimes is introduced in Fast X as a new member of Dom's team and the leader of Mr. Nobody's agency, but in the film's final minutes, it's revealed that he was a double agent for Dante the entire time. In a Fast X flashback, Aimes is cleverly inserted into the Fast Five ending with Dante as they watch Dom and Brian speed off with Dante's father's vault, and it makes for a surprisingly effective plot twist.

Although his deception wasn't fully revealed until Fast X's ending, there were still signs of Aimes being somewhat disapproving of Dom and his methods throughout the film. Also, Aimes continuously tried to foil Tess' plans, which perfectly set up the twist and made it believable. Aimes becoming a villain is especially refreshing following countless Fast & Furious baddies becoming the heroes, and it keeps audiences on their toes about which hero or villain could switch sides in Fast & Furious 11.

Why Aimes Can't Become A Hero In Fast 11

Alan Ritchson as Aimes and Vin Diesel as Dom Toretto in Fast & Furious

In an Entertainment Weekly interview, Aimes actor Alan Ritchson actually hinted at the possibility of Aimes switching back to a hero when he made the comment, "he was ultimately a bad guy, at least for now." While the franchise has proven thar redemption isn't out of reach for villains, chances of Aimes becoming a hero are considerably low. The switchback would feel totally out of character given Aimes' firm opinions on Dom and his crew, not to mention his loyalty to Dante. Aimes even outright mocks Dom's former enemies for ing the clan (which was another clever foreshadowing of the plot twist). If Aimes did re the good side in the Fast X sequel, it'd be hypocritical and undermine the whole story.