# The Turbo Charged Prelude for 2 Fast 2 Furious
**The Turbo Charged Prelude for 2 Fast 2 Furious** is a 2003 American action short film directed by Philip G. Atwell, featuring [Paul Walker](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-walker) reprising his role as [Brian O'Conner](https://www.edgepedia.org/brian-oconner) in a series of sequences that bridge *The Fast and the Furious* (2001) with its first sequel, *2 Fast 2 Furious* (2003).[1](https://ordertowatch.com/fast-and-furious/the-turbo-charged-prelude/) The film runs about six minutes and has no dialogue; it shows O'Conner fleeing Los Angeles after letting [Dominic Toretto](https://www.edgepedia.org/dominic-toretto) escape, street racing his way across the country to Miami, where *2 Fast 2 Furious* begins.[1](https://ordertowatch.com/fast-and-furious/the-turbo-charged-prelude/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | June 3, 2003, on the "All New Tricked Out Edition" DVD of *The Fast and the Furious*, three days before *2 Fast 2 Furious* opened in theaters[2](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz) • [3](https://www.taste.io/movies/turbo-charged-prelude-to-2-fast-2-furious-2003-B1lWtZ3ad) |
| Director / writer | Philip G. Atwell; screenplay by Keith Dinielli, from characters by Gary Scott Thompson[4](https://www.filmaffinity.com/en/film479637.html) |
| Runtime and format | About 6 minutes, no original dialogue, with reused footage from the first film[1](https://ordertowatch.com/fast-and-furious/the-turbo-charged-prelude/) • [5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/the-turbo-charged-prelude-for-2-fast-2-furious-2003) |
| Cast | Paul Walker as Brian O'Conner; Minka Kelly as a hitchhiking girl; Vin Diesel appears only in archive footage[4](https://www.filmaffinity.com/en/film479637.html) • [5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/the-turbo-charged-prelude-for-2-fast-2-furious-2003) |
| Production | Original Film and Geronimo Film Productions; distributed by Universal Pictures[4](https://www.filmaffinity.com/en/film479637.html) • [5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/the-turbo-charged-prelude-for-2-fast-2-furious-2003) |
| Audience rating | 6.0/10 on IMDb from about 7,400 votes[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2055789/ratings/) |
## Spoilers
### Story
The short picks up immediately after the end of *The Fast and the Furious*. A national manhunt is under way for Brian O'Conner, a former LAPD officer who leaves Los Angeles before the police can arrest him for helping Dominic Toretto escape, and the FBI pursues him across state lines.[5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/the-turbo-charged-prelude-for-2-fast-2-furious-2003) Driving a 1991 Dodge Stealth, he works his way east across the [Sun Belt](https://www.edgepedia.org/sun-belt) through Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, entering street races to win the money that keeps him moving.[5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/the-turbo-charged-prelude-for-2-fast-2-furious-2003)
Each stop follows the same pattern: O'Conner races for cash, upgrades his car, and leaves another town ahead of the law.[1](https://ordertowatch.com/fast-and-furious/the-turbo-charged-prelude/) Along the way he races a [Mitsubishi 3000GT](https://www.edgepedia.org/mitsubishi-3000gt) to earn enough money to buy a [Nissan Skyline GT-R](https://www.edgepedia.org/nissan-skyline-gt-r) from a used car lot, restores it, and drives it across the country, at one point going head-to-head with a Ferrari 360 Spider.[7](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/entertainment/a31280542/2fast-2furious-prelude-short-film/) The film ends with O'Conner reaching Miami and settling into its street racing scene with the Skyline GT-R, at the point where *2 Fast 2 Furious* begins.[1](https://ordertowatch.com/fast-and-furious/the-turbo-charged-prelude/)
## Production and release
Universal produced the short to bridge the gap between the first film and its sequel, which was directed by [John Singleton](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-singleton) and shifted the action to Miami with an almost entirely new supporting cast after [Vin Diesel](https://www.edgepedia.org/vin-diesel) declined to return.[8](https://api.pageplace.de/preview/DT0400.9781501378881_A45827540/preview-9781501378881_A45827540.pdf) Three days before *2 Fast 2 Furious* opened in June 2003, Universal shipped a special "All New Tricked Out Edition" DVD of the first movie that included the short.[2](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz) Because of this limited home-video release, many viewers first saw it years later in online uploads.[2](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz)
The director, Philip G. Atwell, came from music videos.[2](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz) The film reuses footage from *The Fast and the Furious*, in which dialogue can be partially heard, but it contains no original dialogue at all.[5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/the-turbo-charged-prelude-for-2-fast-2-furious-2003) Its most notable casting is a brief appearance by the young [Minka Kelly](https://www.edgepedia.org/minka-kelly) as one of the women who give rides to anonymous hitchhikers.[2](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz)
## The cars
The vehicles are central to the film, and production details behind them are documented by Craig Lieberman, senior producer for the first few [Fast & Furious](https://www.edgepedia.org/fast-and-furious) films, in a video retrospective.[7](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/entertainment/a31280542/2fast-2furious-prelude-short-film/) Despite the title, the Mitsubishi O'Conner races in was not actually turbocharged.[7](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/entertainment/a31280542/2fast-2furious-prelude-short-film/) The R34 Skyline GT-R bought at a sketchy used car dealership was one of several Motorex loaner cars used in the second film.[7](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/entertainment/a31280542/2fast-2furious-prelude-short-film/) The Internet Movie Car Database lists the production's vehicles as including the 1991 Dodge Stealth, the 1999 Nissan Skyline GT-R, the 2000 Ferrari 360 Spider, a 1994 [Mazda RX-7](https://www.edgepedia.org/mazda-rx-7), a 1992 [Chevrolet Caprice](https://www.edgepedia.org/chevrolet-caprice), and a 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder, among others.[9](https://www.imcdb.org/m2055789.html)
## Reception
The short holds a 6.0/10 rating on IMDb from about 7,400 votes.[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2055789/ratings/) Critical responses have generally treated it as an optional extra rather than a necessary film. A retrospective review judged that the opening of *2 Fast 2 Furious* conveys the same information in less time, and called the short filler meant to sell DVDs.[10](https://goatfilmreviews.com/2015/05/03/short-film-sunday-turbo-charged-prelude-2003/) Another reviewer found the execution amateurish, citing quick cuts and a low budget, while still praising the idea of a franchise using short films to connect its movies.[11](https://themoviefiles.org/Shorts/turbochargedprelude.html) Commentators have also noted that the wordless format gives the film the feel of a narrative music video, trading character development for style.[2](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz)
Within the franchise, the short occupies the second position in both release order and chronological order, and it established a practice Universal later repeated with the 2009 short *Los Bandoleros*, another DVD bonus feature used to fill in the timeline between films.[1](https://ordertowatch.com/fast-and-furious/the-turbo-charged-prelude/) • [2](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz)
## References
1. [The Turbo Charged Prelude (2003) Recap & Ending Explained, OrderToWatch](https://ordertowatch.com/fast-and-furious/the-turbo-charged-prelude/)
2. [Welcome To The Family excerpt by Barry Hertz, The A.V. Club](https://avclub.com/fast-and-the-furious-book-excerpt-barry-hertz)
3. [The Turbo Charged Prelude for 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), Taste](https://www.taste.io/movies/turbo-charged-prelude-to-2-fast-2-furious-2003-B1lWtZ3ad)
4. [The Fast and the Furious: Turbo-Charged Prelude (2003), FilmAffinity](https://www.filmaffinity.com/en/film479637.html)
5. [The Turbo Charged Prelude for 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), NetflixMovies.com](https://www.netflixmovies.com/the-turbo-charged-prelude-for-2-fast-2-furious-2003)
6. [The Turbo-Charged Prelude for 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), IMDb Ratings](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2055789/ratings/)
7. [2Fast 2Furious Prelude Short Film, Road & Track](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/entertainment/a31280542/2fast-2furious-prelude-short-film/)
8. [Full-Throttle Franchise (Bloomsbury Academic, 2023), chapter preview](https://api.pageplace.de/preview/DT0400.9781501378881_A45827540/preview-9781501378881_A45827540.pdf)
9. [Turbo Charged Prelude to 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), IMCDb.org](https://www.imcdb.org/m2055789.html)
10. [Short Film Sunday: Turbo Charged Prelude (2003), GoatFilmReviews](https://goatfilmreviews.com/2015/05/03/short-film-sunday-turbo-charged-prelude-2003/)
11. [Turbo Charged Prelude, The Movie Files](https://themoviefiles.org/Shorts/turbochargedprelude.html)
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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 › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Action, thriller, and crime series film entries › Entries released in the 2000s › Released 2000 to 2004*
*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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