The Fast and the Furious franchise may be one of Hollywood’s most successful movie franchises, but as “fast” and as “furious” as the franchise is, it can't outrun controversy. And as the gods of timing would have it, the latest furor dropped right at the same time as the digital release of The Fate of the Furious. This time, the aggrieved party is no less than Michelle Rodriguez, who took to her Instagram account to air her grievances on what she believes to be a lack of equality between the male and female stars of the franchise. “I hope they decide to show some love to the women of the franchise on the next one, she wrote. “Or I just might have to say goodbye to a loved franchise.”

Yep. From the looks of things, Michelle Rodriguez just threatened to leave the Fast and Furious franchise. Now, this isn’t the first time that Rodriguez has expressed misgivings about the overdose in testosterone the franchise has become quite famous for. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly back in May, the actress lamented the message the Fast and Furious movies are sending to women with a cast and stories that are dominated by men. Turns out, those things “weigh heavy” on her mind and if she doesn’t see any changes in the way the “women of the franchise” are treated, we might have to say goodbye to Letty for good.

Fast and Furious

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First, it was the Dwayne Johnson – Vin Diesel beef that almost broke the Internet. Now it’s Michelle Rodriguez voicing her frustration over the roles women have in the movies. Clearly, there’s a lot of heat within the franchise that’s going to make it impossible for Universal Studios to ignore.

Rodriguez’s concern can be seen as a valid one from at least one angle. Next to Diesel, she’s the longest-tenured member of the main cast and while she has featured in some major storylines over the course of the last eight movies, she’s never been regarded as a franchise cornerstone the way Diesel is, Johnson has become, and Paul Walker was.

Her gripe could also be seen as a shot towards the lack of parity among the male and women stars of the franchise. As it stands, the core cast only features two women – Rodriguez and Nathalie Emmanuel – as opposed to the male stars, which feature at least seven or eight actors if you throw Kurt Russell and Scott Eastwood into the mix. To be fair though, the villain in Fast 8 was played by Charlize Theron and there have been notable female actors who have appeared in the franchise.

Maybe her gripe is the continuity among these female stars. Jordana Brewster and Gal Gadot are gone. So is Elsa Pataky. Gina Carano and Ronda Rousey played supporting roles at best. Even Dame Helen Mirren had a far smaller role in Fast 8 than everybody was hoping for.

I’m guessing that Rodriguez wants more prominent roles for women actors in the franchise. Whether she gets her wish or not is unclear, but if her calls fall on deaf ears, we might have seen the last of Letty Ortiz in The Fate of the Furious.