Fast X star Alan Ritchson reveals his role was for Keanu Reeves originally

One of the biggest additions to the recent tenth Fast & Furious, Fast X, was Titans and Jack Reacher star Alan Ritchson’s Ames, the head of The Agency which was previously run by Kurt Russell’s Mr Nobody who is now MIA in the series.

SPOILERS FROM HERE ON:

In the movie, Ames is hunting down Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto and hos team after the movie’s villain, Dante, played by the superb here Jason Momoa, sets them all up to make them look like terrorists but, this being Fast & Furious, when ames meets Dom, they soon become friends and fight alongside each other against Dante until, that is, in the final act, Ames is revealed to be… a bad guy working for Ames! Da, da, daaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

I mean, it’s a cool twist which, truthfully I saw coming, that Ritchson played very well, being an intimidating figure in the world of fast cars and spies, but it seems that he wasn’t the original choice for the gig, that role was written for John Wick himself, Keanu Reeves!

Yes, we almost had Reeves, left, in the Fast Saga… and not for the first time. Fans – and readers of FTN – will recall that Reeves almost joined the cast of Hobbs and Saw as the face of the villainous organisation Eteon; Fast & Furious and Hobbs & Shaw writer Chris Morgan said at the time: “I sat down with him [Reeves] and we’re talking about.

“I wanted him to be in the Fast universe for a very long time. We’re just trying to find… the hardest thing is always time and competing schedules and then designing the right thing together. My fervent desire is to bring him into this franchise for sure.”

And it seems it almost happened for Fast X too.

Keanu Reeves has ‘had talks’ about being in the Fast & Furious franchise

“It was just a little stroke of luck and good timing,” Ritchson says. “I was working on a movie with Hilary Swank up in Winnipeg in the freezing cold, and I got a call that things had shifted in the plans with Keanu Reeves, which is I think who was originally intended to play my part. Tough act to follow.”

Personally, I like Ritchson and he was great as Ames but having Reeves, John Wick!, as the head of the Agency who then turns out to be a bad guy would have been a great twist that, because it was Reeves, no-one might have seen coming… plus, evil John Wick for Fast 11 would be something to be excited for.

But it really sounds like Morgan and the team want Reeves involved, so I’d imagine it’ll happen soon enough.

Diesel has previously said he’d love to have Iron Man star Robert Downey Jnr pop up as the big bad in the series, imagine having him and Reeves at the top of the villain tower, now that could be something special and a hell of a way to go.

On  a final note, I just thought I should point out that Ritchson’s first touch of stardom was playing Aquaman in Smallville, meaning that both villains in Fast X are, essentially, Aquaman. Tickles me a little.

Anyways, would you like to see Reeves joining the Fast Saga at some point in the final two movies? Let me know, gang.

Thoughts? I know you have them! Voice-off in the usual ways on FTN’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

WATCH: Final trailer and new clip drop from Fast X

Over many missions and against impossible odds, Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his family have outsmarted, out-nerved and outdriven every foe in their path. Now, they confront the most lethal opponent they’ve ever faced: A terrifying threat emerging from the shadows of the past who’s fueled by blood revenge, and who is determined to shatter this family and destroy everything—and everyone—that Dom loves, forever.

In 2011’s Fast Five, Dom and his crew took out nefarious Brazilian drug kingpin Hernan Reyes and decapitated his empire on a bridge in Rio De Janeiro. What they didn’t know was that Reyes’ son, Dante (Aquaman’s Jason Momoa), witnessed it all and has spent the last 12 years masterminding a plan to make Dom pay the ultimate price.

Dante’s plot will scatter Dom’s family from Los Angeles to the catacombs of Rome, from Brazil to London and from Portugal to Antarctica. New allies will be forged and old enemies will resurface. But everything changes when Dom discovers that his own 8-year-old son (Leo Abelo Perry, Black-ish) is the ultimate target of Dante’s vengeance.

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Directed by Louis Leterrier (Clash of the Titans, The Incredible Hulk), Fast X stars returning cast members Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jordana Brewster, Sung Kang, Jason Statham, John Cena and Scott Eastwood, with Oscar® winner Helen Mirren and Oscar® winner Charlize Theron.

The film also features an extraordinary new cast including Oscar® winner Brie Larson as Tess, a rogue representative from the Agency; Alan Richtson (Reacher) as Aimes, the new head of the Agency who doesn’t hold the same fondness for Dom’s crew as his predecessor, Mr. Nobody; Daniela Melchior (The Suicide Squad) as a Brazilian street racer with a powerful tie to Dom’s past; and legendary Oscar® winner Rita Moreno as Dom and Mia’s Abuelita Toretto.

Cast: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Jason Momoa, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jordana Brewster, John Cena, Jason Statham, Sung Kang, Alan Ritchson, Daniela Melchior, Scott Eastwood, with Helen Mirren, Charlize Theron, Brie Larson and Rita Moreno

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Source: EW