MANILA – “Fast and Furious” star Vin Diesel revealed he is no stranger to Filipino culture even though he has been to the Philippines only once.
Diesel supposedly arrived in Manila on Monday via a private plane, and he is currently in the country along with other “Fast and Furious 6” stars for the red-carpet screening of their movie to be held on Wednesday night at the SM Mall of Asia.
“My sister-in-law is a Filipino and so my niece and nephew are all… it’s been a part of our family for so long,” he told ABS-CBN News.
He said he didn't want to miss the hospitality and the warmth of Filipinos, and so he went around the city on Tuesday.
Diesel shared an experience which validated his expectations.
“Yesterday I went around, I rented one of those buses and I was in the bus... There was a guy that’s selling stuff on the road. He came to the back of the bus and I thought he’s going to sell me something. He said ‘You’re Vin Diesel, you’re Vin Diesel.’ He lit up like a Christmas tree and this is a guy that’s working in the streets, selling stuff to cars going by. He forgot about all that, I just saw his heart come out. It makes me fall in love with the Philippines,” he said.
Diesel said the positive attitude of the street vendor “is a testament to this culture and to the warmth of the people here.”
“I think it is reflected in the street vendor that came up to the car and I think it is reflected in the huge global stars like Manny (Pacquiao). I think he is just as giving and just as generous and welcoming like that street vendor. That says a lot about the people,” he said.
Diesel said he would love to have another trip to Manila soon so he can see the country’s tourist spots.
Shooting ‘Fast and Furious 6’
Meanwhile, Diesel shared how hard it was doing all the stunts and the fight scenes in the 6th installment of the “Fast and Furious.”
“It’s like each thing we do, we feel like we have to punch it up a little bit more and intensify the action. I guess as you get older, you start to wonder how many of these stunts you’ll survive. Sometimes it gets pretty crazy,” he said.
“There are days for real when I would come home and I would just think to myself ‘What the hell did I just do?’ I’d have to ask myself, ‘Is it really worth the quality of the movie for me to take some risks and for me to put myself on the line like that?’ But it’s part of what comes with this kind of franchise,” he added.
Saying he has been in front of the camera since he was seven years old, Diesel said he learned the approach of just “doing anything [until] I almost blackout from reality.”
Diesel said three more installments are in store for the action-packed franchise.
