F9: The Fast Saga is finally here, and if audiences fallen off of the franchise in recent years, here's everything they need to know to hop back into the driver’s seat. Like how Fast Five and Fast and Furious 6 were closely connected, Fast and Furious 9 is bringing back villains and plotlines from The Fate of the Furious. The new movie is also diving deep into the history of the Toretto family and bringing back a fan-favorite character who most believed was dead.

The core crew of F9 consists of Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel), Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez), and Mia Toretto (Jordana Brewster), all of whom were introduced in the original film, along with Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej Parker (Ludacris) from 2 Fast 2 Furious and Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel), who first entered the franchise in Furious 7. Tokyo Drift’s Han (Sung Kang) will also feature in F9 after being believed dead for the past two movies. The Fate of the Furious villain Cipher (Charlize Theron) is back as the main bad guy, aided this time by newcomer Jakob Toretto (John Cena) – Dom and Mia’s estranged brother.

Related: Fast & Furious Rewatch Guide: The Key Movies To Watch Before F9

It looks like the new movie will be dealing heavily with the events of The Fate of the Furious which tied the storylines of the preceding films together with the introduction of a singular villain mastermind. F9 also involves the early lives of the Toretto siblings, as well as Han’s escapades in Tokyo. Here’s what you need to know going into Fast and Furious 9.

What Happened In The Last Fast & Furious Film, The Fate Of The Furious?

Vin diesel Fate of the furious elena doms baby

At the beginning of The Fate of the Furious, things are going well for Dom and his family. During his honeymoon with Letty in Cuba, however, Dom is approached by international cyberterrorist Cipher, who tells him he needs to do a job for her, or else. It’s later revealed that Dom has a son (unknown to him at the time) with Elena Neves (Elsa Pataky), the DSS agent who Dom was romantically involved with between Fast Five and Fast and Furious 6, when he believed that Letty was dead. Cipher reveals that she has abducted Elena and their son, and threatens to kill them if he doesn’t do what she tells him.

What follows is a series of double-crosses and a chase around the globe, with Dom ultimately joining forces with Furious 7 villain Deckard Shaw and his mother Magdalene (Helen Mirren) to help save his family. It turns out that Deckard’s brother Owen was working for Cipher in Fast and Furious 6, and that the other Furious 7 villain, warlord Mose Jakande, was working for Cipher, too. Like Dom, Deckard wants vengeance for the pain Cipher has caused him and his family.

Cipher ultimately kills Elena, but Deckard is able to save Dom’s son, thereby mending the feud between them. Cipher’s evil plan is prevented, but she manages to escape capture. The family returns home, with Dom and Letty welcoming their new son – named Brian, after Paul Walker’s character – into the fold.

Related: Every Fast & Furious Movie Coming After F9

Dominic Toretto's Backstory And Family Explained

Fast and furious 9 Dom and jakob

As many wise fans have said before, Fast and Furious is about family. That’s never been truer than in F9: The Fast Saga, which brings back Dom and Mia’s estranged brother Jakob in a villainous role. To understand Jakob and his part of the story, it’s important to first understand the Toretto family history, and where that family now stands.

Dom and Mia’s father was a stock car driver and a centerpiece of the local community, hosting Sunday barbecues and helping out his neighbors whenever he could. That all ended when he died tragically in a racing accident. In a fit of rage and retaliation, a young Dom beat the driver responsible to within an inch of his life, serving time in prison for the assault. Not much is known about the matriarch of the Toretto family during this time, and no mention has been made of another sibling prior to F9.

Now, Dom is a father himself. At the start of F9, he, Letty, and little Brian are living on a piece of land outside the city, while the old Toretto house (which Deckard Shaw blew up in Furious 7) finishes being repaired. The return of Jakob brings Dom back into the action, and even causes Mia to return to the crew. Mia wasn’t present for the events of The Fate of the Furious because of her husband Brian being written out of the story following Paul Walker’s tragic death. But now, it seems that the old Toretto family history will bring all three siblings back together again.

Cipher Explained: F9’s Villain

Cipher inside her plane in The Fate Of The Furious

As previously mentioned, Cipher has effectively been made the mastermind of the past three Fast and Furious films. Owen Shaw was working for her in Fast and Furious 6, Mose Jakande was working for her in Furious 7, and she finally entered the picture herself in The Fate of the Furious. Played with an old-school brand of icy evil by Theron, Cipher is effectively a James Bond villain. She has a lot of beef with both Dom and the Shaw family, as well as their allies. In F9, she’ll be looking for vengeance along with her latest quest for power. But after she killed Elena in the last film, Cipher won’t be the only one out for revenge.

Related: Every Tokyo Drift Character & Actor Returning In Fast & Furious 9

What Happened To Mr. Nobody After The Fate Of The Furious?

Mr Nobody giving orders in Furious 7.

For the last two movies, Dom and the crew have been working as an elite commando unit for Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell), a mysterious government operative with near-limitless resources at his disposal. Russell has essentially been positioned as Cipher’s foil in the series, and he’ll likely return to aid in the fight against her in Fast and Furious 9. A lot about Mr. Nobody is still a mystery, but for the purposes of the story, he’s basically become the excuse for Dom and the gang to have access to ridiculously advanced weapons, technology, and the fastest cars on the market.

Han's Death And Return Explained

Han Fast and furious 9 How he survived the crash Tokyo Drift

The other major storyline in F9: The Fast Saga is the return of Han, who was believed to have died in Tokyo Drift/Furious 7 (Tokyo Drift takes place between Fast and Furious 6 and Furious 7 in the timeline, despite being the third film to be released). In Tokyo Drift, it looked like Han simply crashed during a high-speed chase. However, Furious 7 retconned that story, revealing that Deckard Shaw actually killed Han by causing the crash – revenge for Han helping Dom put Deckard's brother Owen in the hospital in Fast and Furious 6. Because Deckard killed Han, many fans objected when he was brought into the family in The Fate of the Furious, sparking the online #JusticeForHan campaign.

Now Han is back. The exact details of how and why he managed to survive will likely be revealed in the movie itself, but the trailers suggest that he may have been hiding out in Tokyo this whole time. Hobbs and Shaw will both be absent from F9 – in part because of disagreements amongst the cast – which means that it may be tough to fully resolve the Han/Shaw plotline. But after two movies away, and with his old Tokyo Drift crew joining the rest of the Fast family in F9: The Fast Saga, it should still be exciting to see Han behind the wheel once more.

Next: Fast & Furious: Dead Characters Who Should Return (Because Han Is)