Which 2001 film was the first in the 'Fast & Furious' franchise?

The Fast and the Furious was the first film in the Fast & Furious franchise, released in 2001. Directed by Rob Cohen, it stars Paul Walker as undercover police officer Brian O’Conner and Vin Diesel as street racer Dominic Toretto.

The story follows O’Conner as he investigates a series of truck hijackings by infiltrating Toretto’s Los Angeles street-racing crew. The film’s concept was inspired partly by “Racer X,” a 1998 Vibe magazine article by Ken Li about illegal street racing in New York City.

The title is sometimes confused with Fast & Furious, the franchise’s fourth film, released in 2009. The original film premiered in Los Angeles on June 18, 2001, and reached U.S. theaters on June 22. Made for about $38 million, it earned more than $207 million worldwide and led to the sequel 2 Fast 2 Furious in 2003.