When Vin Diesel compared himself to Federico Fellini: “I would do anything I’d have to do”
Vin Diesel is one of the greatest mysteries of the 21st Century. For starters, nobody knows where he comes from. He’s never met his real father and describes himself as “of ambiguous ethnicity”. Then there’s his filmography. You’re never going to find anyone with as diverse a set of films as this guy. Saving Private Ryan and The Pacifier? Pitch Black and The Iron Giant? I could go on.
Nowhere is the chrome-domed star’s bizarreness more apparent than in his attitude towards the ‘Fast and Furious’ franchise. Diesel, who has been involved in the high-octane nonsense-fests since the very start, is very passionate about these movies. He truly believes that there’s more to them than just a bunch of overpaid people pissing about in cars for two hours at a time, which, as we all know, is all there is to it. Don’t let him catch you saying that, though. You know what he does to people who disrespect his ‘family’.
Michael Caine’s best friend – another weird string to his bow – has been a producer on the series since the fourth film, which is confusingly called ‘Fast and Furious’. This means he’s been involved in several key creative decisions, including bringing aboard Dwayne Johnson as Luke Hobbs. As he described to Men’s Health, Diesel put a lot of thought into how to handle the former WWE star.
“My approach at the time was a lot of tough love to assist in getting that performance where it needed to be,” he said. “We’re going to take Dwayne Johnson, who’s associated with wrestling, and we’re going to force this cinematic world, audience members, to regard his character as someone that they don’t know – Hobbs hits you like a ton of bricks. That’s something that I’m proud of, that aesthetic. That took a lot of work. We had to get there and sometimes, at that time, I could give a lot of tough love. Not Felliniesque, but I would do anything I’d have to do in order to get performances in anything I’m producing.”
Diesel invoking the name of one of the greatest directors was probably not what you expected in a discussion about the guy from Tooth Fairy. However, and I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but he does have a point. Federico Fellini wasn’t always the easiest person to work with. He demanded perfection, of himself and of others, which often led to rather uncomfortable situations on set. The results speak for themselves – you don’t earn a reputation like Fellini’s without making some bloody good films – but they came at a cost.
Much like his Italian predecessor, Diesel also suffered as a result of his hardcore producing style. Johnson went on to become an integral part of the ‘Fast’ franchise, even getting his own spinoff movie with Jason Statham. However, as his star (and ego) grew, he found himself increasingly at odds with his co-star. Johnson and Diesel had a very public falling out that left the future of the series hanging in the balance. It’s just like 8 ½, but with more biceps.
You might think that any comparison between Diesel and Fellini is ridiculous, but that’s not the point. The fact that the former would even conjure the name of the latter proves how unexpectedly deep he can be. Never change, Vin, never change.
