Vin Diesel Opens Up About Han's Return In Fast & Furious 9
Back when the F9 trailer first dropped at the beginning of 2020 — in the good ol' days when we thought the movie was coming in May of that cursed year — longtime fans of the franchise absolutely lost it over the reveal that Han Lue, AKA Han Seoul-Oh (Sung Kang) was returning to the series. The perpetually snacking and usually wise-cracking character has appeared in a handful of Fast & the Furious movies, most notably The Fast & the Furious: Tokyo Drift. At the end of that movie, Han died in an explosion ... except, as it turns out, no he didn't.
Thanks to the non-linear timeline of The Fast & the Furious, even though Tokyo Drift was the third film released, Han appeared in multiple other movies in the series that came out later, but were technically prequels. He became such a beloved character that when the series jumped ahead in time past the events of his "death," fans were left heartbroken. In fact, they even started the social media campaign #JusticeForHan.
Those calls for justice were heard. In anticipation of F9's (theoretical) May 28, 2021 release date, franchise star Vin Diesel spoke with Entertainment Weekly about the upcoming flick and revealed that it's not just the fans who are hyped about seeing Han again. For Diesel, Han's return represents the franchise celebrating what makes it so great: "Han is an integral character in this franchise [...] there's something very special and magical about the Han character."
Here's what else he had to say about the beloved character's return.
As with all things Fast & the Furious, Han's return is about family
When talking to Entertainment Weekly about why he's as pumped as the fans are about Han's rise from the dead, Vin Diesel went deep on the important role the character has played in the franchise. He explained, "If you remember, [Han]'s kind of responsible for the away years of Dom Toretto. He's the one doing jobs with him in Mexico, he's the only one who knows where Dom is, and in many ways is the bridge for Dom when Dom comes back in Tokyo Drift."
After extolling how vital Han is to the series, Diesel teased, "When you see the movie you'll feel it, but I believe at the core it's another testament to, not only don't turn your back on family, but don't give up on family. Without giving away the plot, that's the theme: don't give up on family."
Anyone who has watched the movies knows that family is one of the most important themes. For Diesel, it's not just the wholesome message of the franchise, but it's also the very thing that sets it apart. He said, "Family is at the core of the Fast & Furious, and how you explore that and play with that is what makes for an interesting franchise."
There's little doubt that seeing Han back on screen again is going to get Fast & the Furious fans feeling that familial pride.