Fast & Furious 9 cannot get justice for Han. The forthcoming sequel promises to finally get justice for Sung Kang's revived character, but that's not going to be as easy as they make it sound. Years after his last appearance in Fast & Furious 6, the mild-mannered member of Dom's crew is returning for the upcoming installment of the Fast Saga. Aside from questions regarding how he survived his supposed murder at the end of The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift, there's also a special interest in finding out whether the franchise will finally deliver on the long-overdue justice for what happened to him.
Due to the confusing timeline of the Fast Saga, it's often forgotten that the events of The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift take place before Furious 7. That's why despite Han's supposed death in the Japan-set offshoot, he was still able to partake in Dom's crew's adventures in Fast & Furious, Fast Five, and Fast & Furious 6. Regardless of the out-of-order theatrical releases of these movies, the important thing now is Han is back for Fast 9, and his return is teased to be a major factor in the film's narrative.
The revelation that Han is alive in the first trailer of Fast 9 also teased the idea that Deckard Shaw's (Jason Statham) plot to kill him in The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift will finally be addressed. Following a brutal face-off in Furious 7, Fate of the Furious saw the older Shaw brother cozying up with Han's former crew after he played a pivotal part in saving Dom's secret son from Cipher (Charlize Theron). This caused an uproar not just from fans, but also from cast members who have been vocal about opposing that creative choice. It may have taken a while for the Fast Saga to address this issue, but it appears that they're finally committed to finally delivering justice for Han. There's only one problem — justice is achieved when one is held accountable for their actions, and with Deckard not appearing in the film, Fast 9 will have a difficult time keeping its promise.
Based on what's known about the story of Fast 9, its main antagonist is Jakob (John Cena) — Dom and Mia's estranged brother. Backed up by Cipher, Jakob is motivated to kill Dom in particular; it's unclear why at this point, but it does seem like they have an ugly past. Dom isn't particularly innocent in this situation, as well, considering that he, himself, admits in the official marketing that his past is catching up with him. Given this main premise for the film, it will be interesting to see how Han fits in other than simply appearing. It doesn't appear like he has previous connections with Jakob, and if he did, it's more than likely irrelevant to what happened to him in Japan. There's also the possibility that Han is secretly working with Cipher, but that totally defeats the purpose of the movie promising his crew to deliver justice for him.
While there's a small chance that Fast & Furious 9 can actually deliver total justice for Han, that doesn't mean that it will never be done. This subplot can continue onto the confirmed Fast & Furious 10 where Deckard and even Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) can appear for the final film in the Fast Saga. At this point, there's no need to resolve the issue in one film if it means that it will be done haphazardly. Fans would be more open to seeing this whole narrative play out for a more satisfying payoff.
