Here’s Why The Fast & Furious Franchise Once Hired A Fake Director (Photo Credit – Prime Video)
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Shooting any The Fast & The Furious movie is always intense, but Tokyo Drift took things to a whole new level. Universal Pictures was so determined to film in Tokyo that they literally hired a fake director to go to jail. Yes, really. Japan isn’t exactly Hollywood-friendly when it comes to filming. However, director Justin Lin found that out the hard way when he wanted to shoot in Shibuya, one of the busiest spots in Tokyo.
“When we went to shoot in Tokyo, it’s a very different culture. They don’t give out film permits,” Lin revealed in an interview with Digital Spy. Instead of shutting down streets or blocking off locations, they had to roll with the chaos. “We would be setting up a scene, and people would just walk right through the set.”
But Lin wasn’t about to give up. He had to get creative if he wanted those iconic neon-lit street races in his The Fast & The Furious installment. And Universal had a plan — one that involved a fake fall guy. Lin pushed forward, cameras rolling, permits or not. The police in Japan are polite, but persistent. Once they arrived, it took about 10 minutes before they’d shut everything down. Lin knew he was in trouble. What he didn’t know was that Universal had already thought ahead.
“I wanted to shoot in Shibuya, which is the most crowded place in Tokyo,” Lin explained. “The cops, they’re all so polite, so it takes 10 minutes for them to come over and kick you out. They shut us down, I’d gotten all my shots, but I didn’t know they were going to arrest me.” Just as Lin was about to get hauled off, someone else stepped up. “Another guy said, ‘I’m the director.’ I found out that it was his job to take the fall for me. He went to jail for the night, and I’m forever grateful.”
Universal’s bold move let Lin finish The Fast & The Furious: Tokyo Drift without a hitch. Meanwhile, the mystery stand-in spent a night behind bars. Who was he? What did they tell him? Did he get hazard pay? That part remains a mystery. But one thing is clear: Universal was all in on Lin. They didn’t just back his vision for Tokyo Drift; they doubled down on him for three more movies. After a brief break to direct Star Trek Beyond, Lin returned for F9 and even more Fast sequels.
Plenty of movies have had rogue shoots, but few have gone this far. The Fast & Furious franchise has always been about high-stakes action and bending the rules. This time, the rule-breaking wasn’t just on-screen; it was behind the camera, too.
