Warning: There are spoilers for The Fate of the Furious in play. If you haven't seen the film, bookmark this page & come back once you've crossed the finish line.
As if the numerous characters and factions of the Fast & Furious franchise didn't already pose a confusing flow-chart of relations, The Fate of the Furious has introduced us to the most intimidating villain of the series yet. With the eighth film looking to start the potentially final trilogy of films in the series, Charlize Theron's Cipher looks to be the antagonist for this new group of action-packed installments.
Yet by the time she escaped the clutches of Dom, his family, and the DSS, one big question wasn't answered: who the hell is she? Well, with our powers of deduction, and a heaping dose of salt, we're going to try and call out who this mysterious force of digital nature is to the Fast & Furious world. If you've got your own theories, feel free to break out the notecards and yarn in our Comments section and let us know what you think!
She's A DSS Agent Gone Rogue
With an extensive knowledge of computer hacking, and the usage of some high-tech tricks of her own, Cipher was pretty quick to find Mr. Nobody's secret lair, also known as "Nowhere." Sure, it could be assumed that the God's Eye was her way in, but another theory feels like a better fit. Cipher could be a rogue DSS agent, disillusioned by the missions that she's been sent on in order to secure the world from itself. Who else would want to hold the world's governments "accountable" for its actions, and have access to all of the tools to do just that?
She's Related To Brian O'Conner
If the Fast & Furious movies could be boiled down to one word, it'd be "family." And what better way to close out the franchise, and keep the spirit of Paul Walker's Brian O'Conner alive, in revealing that Cipher is somehow related to Brian -- be it by blood or marriage. The story could play out that Cipher was originally on the same criminal path that Brian was, before he went straight and became a cop. Cipher, on the other hand, went deeper and darker into her criminal activities, culminating in her becoming the greatest cyber-terrorist in the Fast & Furious world. As long as he was racing cars and stealing stuff, there was always a chance she could have flipped Brian back. But since Dom instilled the power of family into Brian, he could be seen as the man who blew her last chance at getting her family back.
She's An Ex-Girlfriend Dom's Yet To Talk About
While Cipher laid a big kiss on Dom's lips during her raid on Nowhere, she later negated the act as something that was done as a theatrical trick rather than a declaration of love. But what if she was once a love of Dom's, and it's just being hidden for another film? The way she lured him in, made him betray his family, and toyed with him throughout The Fate of the Furious seems a little much for someone who's just looking for revenge against two foiled big-ticket thefts. Even killing Elena, the mother of Dom's child, could be a good sign that Cipher's heartbreak has turned her totally cold, wanting Dom and the world to burn for their actions.
She's A Secret Shaw Family Member
Another, and perhaps the greatest theory yet, is that of Cipher being a member of the ever growing Shaw family. Think about it: she contacted both Owen AND Deckard in order to draft them into her plans. It could be she heard they're the best at what they do, OR, this could offer the one answer to how and why the Shaw family ever got involved in the activities of the Toretto gang in the first place. Owen went to the dark side to pull off the job featured in Fast & Furious 6, and Deckard only got involved as an act of vengeance for Owen. So if Owen only agreed to try and steal the Nightshade device so his sister could fulfill the family's dream of accountability being called for by the politicians that sent himself and his brother into the line of fire so easily, then you'd have a hell of a family drama to resolve over the next two films.
