Michelle Rodriguez Leaving 'The Fast & the Furious' Franchise?
Michelle Rodriguez has recently doubled down on her threat to leave "The Fast and the Furious" if the franchise does not become more inclusive of women.
Rodriguez wants everyone to know that she is seriously considering leaving the hit franchise, according to reports. The actress has been playing Letty Ortiz in "The Fast and the Furious" movies for more than 16 years. However, she has also been very vocal about her disappointment in the franchise these past few months.
In a statement to TMZ (via Cosmopolitan), the 39-year-old clarified that she means serious business when she said she will exit the film series if women are not represented better in the upcoming installments. "My path is about female empowerment, and if I'm feeling a little stagnant in that area in what I'm doing for a living, then I'm gonna have to move on. Evolve or die, baby," she said.
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She added, "I hope they show some love to the women in the franchise ... I can count with one hand the times I've talked to the female actresses in the franchise, and I think that's kinda sad."
The brunette beauty's statement comes just a few months after she posted about the franchise on Instagram. It was the first time she mentioned about leaving "The Fast and the Furious" if it does not include more female characters in the future.
Rodriguez is one of the series' longstanding female characters since its debut. Over the years, the franchise has also welcomed actresses for key roles including Gal Gadot, Charlize Theron and Jordana Brewster.
However, the female characters were mostly underdeveloped and they only have little screen time outside of their scenes with the male stars Vin Diesel, Jason Statham and Dwayne Johnson.
After starring on "The Fate of the Furious" earlier this year, Rodriguez will next be seen on the upcoming films "Alita: Battle Angel" and "Widows."
