As far as preparations go, it could have gone a lot better for Fast 10 director Louis Leterrier. Having been parachuted into the project after the sudden departure of Justin Lin, he found himself with no prep time and, crucially, no location for the movie’s third act set-piece.
Instead of the planned ending, Leterrier and his scouting team had to resort to unconventional methods to find a new location for Dom and his Fast family to speed through.
"Because I had no prep and literally arrived in London, they told me they lost the location in Montenegro. It was a very different location to what we eventually found. We sent scouts all over the world," Leterrier told 12DOVE.
"We found a freeway and then a quarry next to it, then a bridge. Because I could not stop the shoot and prep something else, I had to do it all on Google Maps at night after a long day of shooting and editing," the director explained. "Just going in and doing an overview, zooming in, going 3D view, then creating the action sequence [in the movie]. You know in Google Maps when you walk, the Street View? I did it like that, that little guy going there."
Then, they struck gold, finding a dam right next door at the Portuguese location – featured in Dr. Zhivago, no less.
"It’s so cinematic, the most beautiful thing. I could have shot an entire movie there. I said, ‘yes, that’s it’, that’s our set piece, that’s the exclamation point at the end. Luckily, the studio said ‘go for it. This is crazy, but let’s just go.’"
It also sparked a brainwave for Leterrier, who harkened back to his childhood playing with toy cars as inspiration for – mild spoilers – one of Dom’s biggest daredevil acts, driving directly down the dam.
"I had to think about what my fantasies as a child were, playing with my cars. What did I want to do? I remember, in my bathtub, I used to drive a car down the side of my bathtub which [in Fast 10] would be the dam."
So, there you have it: Google Maps and a bathtub. An unlikely combo – but one that directly influenced (and saved) Fast 10’s explosive final act. For more from Leterrier, read his thoughts on Jason Momoa's Dante, a character he describes as the franchise's "greatest" villain.
Fast 10 is now in cinemas. If you've already seen the movie, dive straight into our explainers on the Fast 10 ending and Fast 10 post-credits scene.
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