Michelle Rodriguez to Quit ‘Fast & Furious’ Unless Women Are at the Forefront
The Fast & Furious franchise has been quite successful to say the least, but now one of its stars is threatening to leave unless producers start to show love for the female characters.
Michelle Rodriguez has played Letty Ortiz in six of the Fast & Furious films. On Tuesday, the actress said on Instagram that she’s prepared to leave the role in the next film doesn’t bring women more into the spotlight.
“F8 is out digitally today, I hope they decide to show some love to the women of the franchise on the next one,” she wrote, along with pictures of her with Diesel and costar Nathalie Emmanuel. “Or I just might have to say goodbye to a loved franchise. It’s been a good ride & Im grateful for the opportunity the fans & studio have provided over the years… One Love.”
While films have added more females to the cast, the movies are still very much male dominated.
“I’ve been making movies with Jordana, who plays the sister of Dom Toretto, for 16 years and I can count on one hand how many lines I’ve had to her,” Michelle said to Entertainment Weekly. “I think that’s pathetic and it’s lack of creativity.”
She later added: “It does weigh heavy on my head — especially in the male-dominated environment that I work in. At the end of the day, the only leverage I have as an individual is my participation. That’s the only leverage I ever use with anything. It’s like, look, this doesn’t agree with my ethics, morals. My heart doesn’t feel right doing this in front of millions of people, so I can always oblige myself and depart because money, to me, isn’t as important as my lines that you’re not allowed to cross.”