Vin Diesel and company get "Fast & Furious" again

By Alex Dobuzinskis

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Street racing movie "Fast & Furious" motors into theaters on Friday with action star Vin Diesel and others from the original film back on screen to refuel the film franchise.

In 2001, the first film in the series, "The Fast and the Furious," surprised Hollywood with more than $207 million in worldwide ticket sales, and 2003's sequel "2 Fast 2 Furious" topped that figure with $236 million.

The most recent movie, 2006's "The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift," lost momentum, however, earning only $158 million globally. So, Universal Pictures has given the franchise an overhaul and returned with original cast members Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Paul Walker and Jordana Brewster.

Still, the four have enjoyed limited success outside the street racing "Fast and the Furious series, leaving industry watchers to wonder if they can still lure fans to theaters.

Walker, who starred in the first two films and races cars in real life, said he understands the series' appeal.

"It's just car culture, doesn't matter where you are in the world, it's huge," Walker said. "And that's why internationally this thing hit the way it did."

In the original, Diesel played tough guy Dom Toretto, the street racing leader of a thieving gang. Undercover cop Brian O'Conner (Walker) was assigned to take down the gang, but got entangled with Dom's sister, Mia (Brewster), and with racing.

For the new movie, the setting changes from Los Angeles to the Mexican desert, and old foes Dom and Brian team up to confront a common enemy. Along the way come car chases, convoy heists and burning gas tankers.