WARNING! This article contains major SPOILERS for Fast X!Jason Momoa has a stand-out performance as Fast X’s Dante Reyes, who brings an absurd goofiness that is completely appropriate for the saga’s final villain. After 10 movies, Fast X marks the beginning of the end of the Fast Saga, which follows Dominic Toretto’s street-racing crew/family on dangerous heists, spy missions, and battles with brutal villains across the globe. In Fast X, Dom’s life is flipped upside down when Dante Reyes, son of Fast Five’s druglord villain Hernan Reyes, vows revenge against Vin Diesel’s character for the downfall of his family. Up until the final moments of Fast X’s cliffhanger ending, Dante creates chaos and suffering for the Toretto family, with the severity of his attacks contrasting the silliness in Dante’s flamboyance.
Dante is unlike any villain Dom has faced before. Momoa’s Fast X character is the most ruthless with his attacks, contrasts Dom’s persona, has no moral compass, and – unlike Dom – has nothing to lose. Much like Idris Elba in Hobbs & Shaw, Momoa knows exactly what type of movie he’s in, so the utter absurdities of Dante’s lines and actions are fitting as contradictions to Dom. From gleefully painting the toenails of dead bodies to childishly calling Dom a “butthole” in a standoff, Fast X’s Dante certainly isn’t the grave villain Dom has often opposed. Dante may be a stark departure from past villains, but this change in ridiculousness is exactly what’s expected of the Fast Saga’s final boss, whose terror will continue in Fast & Furious 11‘s story.
Jason Momoa’s Villain Steals Every Fast X Scene He’s In
Fast X is at its best whenever Jason Momoa is on the screen. Momoa can’t help but be simultaneously charismatic, hilarious, and terrifying in his character’s pursuit to ruin the life and legacy of Dom Toretto. Dante’s childish disposition is mixed with his cold, calculated plans to unleash the ultimate suffering on Dom, though the laughter that comes from Momoa’s lines and actions miraculously doesn’t undermine the sinister nature of his mission and attacks. Momoa’s persona is so large in Fast X that he overpowers every scene he appears in, making his appearances even more memorable than Dom’s.
Fast X features several sources of comic relief, particularly Tyrese Gibson’s Roman and John Cena’s now-deceased character Jakob, but they don’t compare to the chaotic energy of Momoa’s Dante. Many of Dante’s lines are so unexpectedly ridiculous as a contrast to Dom’s seriousness that they’re truly unforgettable, whether it’s gagging at the word “family” to make fun of Dom or calling his own father Hernan a “bad daddy” in a pouty voice. Momoa’s presence towers over the rest of the A-list cast in Fast X, which ultimately gives him a significant degree of power over the film’s tone and makes this high-stakes Fast & Furious installment his movie.
Dante’s Goofiness Is A Fitting Culmination Of Fast & Furious’ Growing Ridiculousness
The Fast & Furious franchise has earned a reputation for the increasing ridiculousness of its stunts, character developments, cyborg inclusions, and plot points, with Fast X certainly being the pinnacle of this growing trend. The absurdity of the franchise’s stunts, the incomprehensible character resurrections, wild car features, and even the behind-the-scenes feud between Vin Diesel and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson have driven forth the lesson that the serious demeanors of the Fast & Furious characters do not reflect the seriousness of the movies themselves. Therefore, as nearly every aspect of the Fast & Furious becomes more bizarre, it’s fitting that the franchise’s final villain would also be the most ludicrous.
Jason Momoa’s Dante Reyes is the personification of the Fast & Furious movies’ ridiculousness, which is appropriately taken to the next level through the character’s incredibly juvenile mannerisms. Rather than simply using the ridiculousness on their side to survive improbable situations, Dom and Fast X‘s returning characters are finally battling their own amusing absurdities in the form of Dante Reyes, thus creating an eccentrically vicious match unlike anything the franchise has seen before. Dante’s level of goofiness and theatricality is almost surprising, but isn’t shocking given the increasingly illogical road that Fast & Furious continues to accelerate down.
Momoa’s Ridiculousness Makes Dante More Sadistic (& Dom’s Best Saga-Ending Foil)
While it would seem logical that Momoa’s ridiculousness would make Dante somewhat less menacing, his lack of seriousness and unpredictability in his demeanor are actually what make him so sadistic when it comes to tearing down Dom and his family. Dante will go to any length to get back at Dom, no matter how absurd or unthinkable the strategy. In fact, some of Dante’s Fast X plans to make Dom suffer are so immaturely ruthless that they can’t come from someone with a moral compass, such as releasing a giant rolling bomb to destroy the Vatican.
Proving the extent of his malicious ambitions, after Dante finishes destroying Vin Diesel’s Dom, he also plans to take revenge on The Rock’s Hobbs, as revealed in Fast X‘s mid-credits scene. Not only is Dante trying to take down Dom as outrageously as possible, but the villain genuinely has no fear as he challenges the Fast & Furious franchise’s toughest heroes. Underneath Dante’s seemingly disarming flamboyant exterior is a terrifyingly wicked, calculated villain who will hold back nothing to defeat Dom and those who played a role in his father’s death, even if that means killing Dom’s young son Little Brian.
Dante’s silly ostentatiousness also makes him the greatest foil for the stern, stoic Dom as the Fast Saga comes to a close. Dom and Dante are clear opposites in their dispositions and values, with Dom’s seriousness, restraint, and control being undermined by Dante’s highly effective chaos. Dom doesn’t know how to deal with someone like Dante because he can’t begin to understand his tactics or morals; the only commonality they share is that their greatest motivations are their families. Still, Dante is driven more by his father’s loyalty and power than genuine love, whereas Dom sincerely loves those he deems “family” – blood or not. Dante is essentially the Anti-Dom, establishing him as the most ideal villain to complete Dom’s character arc.
Momoa Playing Against Type Makes His Villain More Unforgettable As Fast & Furious’ Final Boss
Jason Momoa is known for playing more rugged and intimidating action heroes, which makes the goofiness of his Fast X villain stand out among his distinguished filmography. Momoa’s most famous roles include the intimidating warlord Khal Drogo in Game of Thrones, the tough and fearsome Arthur Curry in Aquaman, fierce fighter Duncan Idaho in Dune, and fearless warrior Baba Voss in See, yet his most prominent franchise villain role surprisingly flips the typical exterior toughness and stoicism of his well-known characters. Momoa playing against type in such an impactful manner not only makes Dante Reyes stand out among his filmography, but also makes the villain character one of the Fast & Furious franchise’s most memorable characters.
At the conclusion of the saga, Fast X’s villain needs to be someone whose legacy and image stick around long after being defeated by Dom and his crew. Considering Dante is the most unforgettable aspect of Fast X, Momoa’s take on this character was exactly what the 2023 sequel required. The Final Boss for the Fast Saga should be the most impactful, and Jason Momoa succeeds by giving his all to the massively entertaining goofiness of Fast X’s Dante Reyes, whose malice is expected to be even more unpredictable in Fast & Furious 11.
