After waiting over a year since the original release date for the ninth movie in the Fast & Furious franchise, fans are anticipating the new date, set for June 25.

In the waiting time since the eighth movie’s release, fans have had the chance to consider many theories about the events of the upcoming film.

In June 2019, following F9’s official confirmation, Vin Diesel announced that WWE wrestler and actor John Cena, would be cast as his brother, Jakob Toretto, in the next movie. Diesel’s announcement took fans by surprise, as his character, Dom Toretto, has never mentioned having a brother. 

In the official F9 trailer, Jakob is portrayed as an assassin and speed racer who loathes his brother for unknown reasons. Cena plays the main antagonist of the film. 

The Fast & Furious franchise is known for switching up antagonists, and new adversaries appear in almost every film. 

Jakob is seen being recruited by Dom’s latest enemy, a cyber-terrorist named Cipher. In Fate of the Furious, Cipher blackmails Dom into working for her and betraying his family. At the end of the movie, Cipher narrowly escapes after being outwitted by Dom and his gang. 

The eighth movie also leaves off with a new addition to the team, Dom’s son, Brian, affectionately named after the late Paul Walker’s character.

After Walker’s tragic death during the making of Furious 7, the series was left with an incomplete ending for his character, Brian O’Conner. At the end of the seventh movie, Brian and Dom’s sister, Mia Toretto, break off from the gang to raise their two children and start a normal life.

Without Walker’s sudden death, the couple would have stayed in the action. Instead, Brian and Dom are pictured going their separate ways in the closing scene of Furious 7. 

In the eighth movie, neither Brian nor Mia appear on screen, but they are mentioned throughout the plot. Since producers are planning to wrap up the movie series after two more films following F9’s release, fans are hopeful for an ending that features Brian. 

With Brian’s story being left incomplete, Walker’s two brothers are also hopeful that the character will reappear sometime before the franchise’s end. Whether this means fabricating Walker’s character through CGI technology or filming one of the brothers in Walker’s place would still need to be determined. 

Many fans and Walker’s family believe that Brian needs a proper send-off, regardless of how large his role would be in the upcoming movies.

Considering that Walker and Diesel built the franchise together, a final appearance of Walker’s character is only fitting. The series started with the two main characters and the story of their rivalry becoming a friendship. Therefore, fans believe, the series should end with them as well.

There is so much to be expected in the three last films of the beloved series. Fans can only imagine what more chaos and gravity-defying action is yet to come.