# Faster (2010 film)
**Faster** is a 2010 American action thriller directed by George Tillman Jr., in which [Dwayne Johnson](https://www.edgepedia.org/dwayne-johnson) plays an ex-convict, credited only as Driver, who hunts the people responsible for his brother's murder after serving ten years in prison.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) • [2](https://www.sonypictures.com/movies/faster) [Billy Bob Thornton](https://www.edgepedia.org/billy-bob-thornton) and [Oliver Jackson-Cohen](https://www.edgepedia.org/oliver-jackson-cohen) play the two men pursuing him, a veteran narcotics cop and a contract killer.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/faster_2010) CBS Films released the film in the United States on November 24, 2010.[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1433108/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director and writers | George Tillman Jr.; screenplay by Tony Gayton and Joe Gayton[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) |
| Lead cast | Dwayne Johnson (Driver), Billy Bob Thornton (Cop), Oliver Jackson-Cohen (Killer), Carla Gugino (Cicero), Maggie Grace (Lily)[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) |
| Release | November 24, 2010 (wide, domestic), distributed by CBS Films; 98 minutes; rated R[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1433108/) |
| Box office | $23,240,020 domestic, $35,626,958 worldwide, against a $24,000,000 budget[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1433108/) |
| Critical scores | 41% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (128 reviews); Metascore 44 on Metacritic (24 reviews)[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/faster_2010) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/faster-2010/) |
| Production companies | Castle Rock Entertainment, State Street Pictures, CBS Films[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) |
| Composer | Clint Mansell[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Driver leaves prison after ten years with a single purpose: to kill the people responsible for the murder of his brother during the botched bank robbery that led to his own imprisonment.[2](https://www.sonypictures.com/movies/faster) • [6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Faster-%282009%29) Within hours of his first killing he is trailed by two men: a veteran police officer days from retirement and an eager, self-absorbed hitman hired by the man behind the original betrayal.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/faster_2010) • [7](https://ce.amc.com/films/faster) As the killings continue, hints appear that Driver's list is incomplete and that an unknown party may be endangering him.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/faster_2010)
The film follows three parallel threads, each named for its protagonist's role rather than a personal name: Driver, Cop, and Killer. Cop is a heroin-addicted officer with less than a month to retirement who takes the case after Driver's first victim; Killer is guided by the man who arranged the events that sent Driver to prison, and the film intersperses his pursuit with reflections on his own life.[8](https://insidepulse.com/2010/11/26/faster-review/) • [7](https://ce.amc.com/films/faster) Driver races between targets in a vintage [Chevrolet Chevelle](https://www.edgepedia.org/chevrolet-chevelle).[7](https://ce.amc.com/films/faster)
## Production
The screenplay was written by brothers Tony Gayton and Joe Gayton, who also served as a producer alongside Martin Shafer, Liz Glotzer, and Robert Teitel.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) Michael Grady was the cinematographer, Dirk Westervelt the editor, David Lazan the production designer, and [Clint Mansell](https://www.edgepedia.org/clint-mansell) composed the score.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) Grady had worked with Tillman on the director's previous film, *Notorious* (2009), and reviewers noted the deliberately gritty look the two gave the film, evoking 1970s revenge pictures such as *Death Wish* and *The French Connection*.[9](https://moviefilmreview.com/17057/movie-review-of-faster-2010)
The supporting cast includes [Carla Gugino](https://www.edgepedia.org/carla-gugino) as Cicero, Maggie Grace as Lily, Tom Berenger as the warden, [Mike Epps](https://www.edgepedia.org/mike-epps) as Roy Grone, Xander Berkeley as Sergeant Mallory, Matt Gerald as Driver's brother, [Moon Bloodgood](https://www.edgepedia.org/moon-bloodgood) as Marina, and Jennifer Carpenter in a single-credit role as Woman.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657) • [10](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/faster-2010/credits/)
## Release and box office
CBS Films opened *Faster* wide in the United States on November 24, 2010, over the [Thanksgiving](https://www.edgepedia.org/thanksgiving) holiday frame, on 2,454 screens.[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1433108/) • [6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Faster-%282009%29) The film grossed $8,523,153 in its opening weekend, 36.7% of its eventual domestic total, and finished with $23,240,020 domestically and $35,626,958 worldwide against a production budget of $24,000,000.[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1433108/) • [6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Faster-%282009%29) The Numbers records a slightly higher worldwide figure of $35,792,945.[6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Faster-%282009%29) International releases followed through early 2011, including Spain (February 11, 2011), Germany (March 17, 2011), and the United Kingdom (March 25, 2011).[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1433108/) A home video release followed on March 1, 2011.[6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Faster-%282009%29)
The film was the third and final CBS Films release of 2010, and the trade site Bomb Report reports that the company's chief operating officer, Bruce Tobey, was fired a week after the film's poor opening.[11](https://bombreport.com/yearly-breakdowns/2010-2/faster/)
## Reception
Critical response was mixed to negative. On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 41% Tomatometer from 128 reviews, with a critics consensus that reads, "It's good to see Dwayne Johnson back in full-throttle action mode, but *Faster* doesn't deliver enough of the high-octane thrills promised by its title." Audience members rated it higher, at 52% on the site's Popcornmeter from more than 25,000 ratings.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/faster_2010) Metacritic assigned a Metascore of 44, categorized as mixed or average, based on 24 critic reviews, against a user score of 6.4 from 134 ratings.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/faster-2010/)
Reviewers divided over the film's stripped-down approach. Ignatiy Vishnevetsky of the Chicago Reader wrote that "the film never outshines its influences, but as back-to-basics action filmmaking, it's often superb," and [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter)'s Kirk Honeycutt praised it as "stripped for action without a moment wasted on unnecessary dialogue, exposition or nuances."[12](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/faster-2010/critic-reviews/) Negative reviews focused on the emotional flatness of the characters; Mike Massie of Gone With The Twins noted that "there's virtually no comedy relief, the violence is brutal and grim, and the characters aren't even given names."[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/faster_2010) In The Guardian, Peter Bradshaw gave the film one star out of five, calling it a "loud, violent petrolhead revenge thriller," while his colleague Philip French described Johnson stalking the streets of Bakersfield "to little effect."[13](https://www.theguardian.com/film/movie/141048/faster)
Commentators also read the film as a turning point in Johnson's career. It was his first R-rated action film since *Doom* (2005), after several years of family-oriented films, and reviewers noted that he played against his usual screen charm as an emotionless killer driven by revenge.[8](https://insidepulse.com/2010/11/26/faster-review/) • [9](https://moviefilmreview.com/17057/movie-review-of-faster-2010)
## References
1. [Faster (2010), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/66657)
2. [FASTER, Sony Pictures Entertainment](https://www.sonypictures.com/movies/faster)
3. [Faster (2010), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/faster_2010)
4. [Faster (2010), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1433108/)
5. [Faster Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/faster-2010/)
6. [Faster (2010), The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Faster-%282009%29)
7. [Faster, AMC Central Europe](https://ce.amc.com/films/faster)
8. [Faster – Review, Inside Pulse](https://insidepulse.com/2010/11/26/faster-review/)
9. [Movie Review of 'Faster' (2010), Movie and Film Reviews](https://moviefilmreview.com/17057/movie-review-of-faster-2010)
10. [Faster Cast & Crew, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/faster-2010/credits/)
11. [Faster: Dwayne Johnson's Lowest Grossing Wide Release, Bomb Report](https://bombreport.com/yearly-breakdowns/2010-2/faster/)
12. [Faster critic reviews - Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/faster-2010/critic-reviews/)
13. [Faster, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/film/movie/141048/faster)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Action and adventure films (individual works) › Action thrillers, 2010s › Crime and vigilante thrillers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license