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Fast and spurious: the many failed attempts to cash in on the hit car franchise

As the high-octane action series returns with its ninth instalment, F9, how many rip-offs stalled after just one outing?

Like Dom Toretto’s aggressively tuned Dodge Charger, the Fast and Furious series has made a habit out of over-performing. Even when the original film was a breakout summer hit in 2001 no one really expected it to become a brand that would be around for the long haul (not even its star – Vin Diesel bailed out of the first sequel). Two decades, 10 films and $6bn of box office takings later, the road-tested franchise about illegal street racers turned globe-hopping secret agents has earned the right to market itself as a “saga”. But there is another reliable metric of Hollywood success: the amount of copycats you inspire. Here are some of the movies that attempted to recreate the Fast formula but never got off the starting line.

Related: Vroom or bust: is Fast & Furious the ultimate franchise of our times?

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