The Fast & Furious franchise is known for its over-the-top action sequences. It has gone beyond the limits of what’s possible and has always surprised the audience. Many have grown up watching these movies, and that’s enough to understand why they love them.
Beyond the car chases and wild stunts, fans love these films for the tight bonds between the characters, who see each other as family. With Vin Diesel leading the crew, the cast feels like a real-life group of friends you can root for.
The story feels fresh and very real. However, what if we told you that one of the series’ most famous stunts actually came from a lesser-known movie from the 1980s? That scene in Furious 7 is definitely one of the most memorable in the movie.
The Memorable Skyscraper Stunt in Furious 7
Remember the scene in Furious 7 where Vin Diesel‘s character, Dominic Toretto, relies on his driving skills to drive a Lykan HyperSport car through a skyscraper window and land in the building next door?
It all starts when Dom’s team needed to rescue a hacker who knew about a special tracking program, God’s Eye. They headed to Abu Dhabi, where they had to sneak into a party at the Etihad Towers hosted by a prince from Jordan. The prince had the flash drive with God’s Eye hidden in a safe inside a fancy car named Lykan HyperSport.
In classic ‘Fast & Furious’ style, Dom and Brian stole the car from the 50th floor of the tallest tower, crashing through a window into another building. They did the crazy stunt again, flying into a third tower before leaving the car behind as it fell to the ground.
Even though not all of the exciting scene was shot in Abu Dhabi, some of the filming did happen there with the cast and crew. This scene, though quite over-the-top, is pulled off with stunning visual effects and an awe-inspiring display. It’s easy to see why it’s viewed as one of the franchise’s best stunts.
Is The Furious 7’s Stunt Taken From Black Moon Rising?
Amazingly, a very similar scene happened almost 30 years earlier in the 1986 movie Black Moon Rising. This little-known action movie stars Tommy Lee Jones as a former thief now working for the government, and Linda Hamilton as a car thief who steals a super-fast prototype car that can go over 300 miles per hour. The story heats up when Jones plans a heist to get the stolen car back.
The movie’s climax has a scene that’s a lot like Furious 7. Trapped in the high-tech car inside a building, the characters make a daring escape by smashing through a window and landing in the next skyscraper!
The similarity between these scenes is striking. You’d think the makers of Furious 7 would mention Black Moon Rising as an inspiration. Slash Film‘s Ben Pearson asked Jack Gill, one of the second unit directors, if they know about the 1986 movie. “I’ve never heard of the movie,” Gill admitted. He added that while looking into car escape ideas, the Furious 7 team came up with driving between buildings, completely unaware of the earlier film.
Watch Furious 7 and Black Moon Rising on Amazon Prime Video!
Frequently asked questions
What is the famous stunt in Furious 7 involving the Lykan HyperSport?
In Furious 7, Dominic Toretto and Brian drive a Lykan HyperSport car through the window of one Etihad Towers skyscraper in Abu Dhabi and land it in the neighboring building, then repeat the stunt into a third tower. The team steals the car to recover a hidden tracking program called God’s Eye during a mission to rescue a hacker.
Which 1980s movie reportedly featured a similar building-to-building car stunt?
The 1986 film Black Moon Rising, starring Tommy Lee Jones and Linda Hamilton, includes a climactic scene where characters trapped in a high-tech prototype car escape by smashing through a window and landing in the next skyscraper. The visual setup closely resembles the Furious 7 sequence that came almost three decades later.
Did the Furious 7 fillmakers know about Black Moon Rising when creating the stunt?
According to Slash Film’s interview with second unit director Jack Gill, the Furious 7 team was unaware of Black Moon Rising while developing their car-escape concept. Gill said he had “never heard of the movie” and that the team arrived at the building-to-building idea independently while brainstorming car chase possibilities.
