If there's one thing that everyone seems to know about the Fast and Furious franchise -- even through its numerous changes -- it's that the movies are all about family. Some of the original members of the Toretto clan have left the picture in recent years. Now that looks like it's going to change in a significant way, as Vin Diesel has officially teased Jordana Brewster's return to the franchise as Dom's sister, Mia Toretto. She'll be back for the still currently untitled Fast and Furious 9 movie.
The reveal came during a Facebook Live post yesterday in which Vin Diesel broadcasted from a "top secret" set. During the video, he introduced series mainstay Justin Lin (who had already been rumored to return behind the camera for the next two installments in the series), followed Jordana Brewster. Although she has existed in the Fast and Furious universe ever since the very first chapter, Brewster was not present during the events of The Fate of the Furious -- presumably because she was enjoying retirement with the late Paul Walker's Brian O'Conner. However, fans have apparently demanded her return to the franchise, and it looks like they will soon get their wish.
You can check out Vin Diesel's video below to see it for yourself.
How Mia will specifically factor into the events of the next Fast and Furious film remains to be seen. The ending of Furious 7 made it seem like she would be out of action with Brian as they shifted into parenthood, but something significant (possibly Cipher, who remains at large) will undoubtedly force her hand. Now it's a matter of waiting to see if we will also see Brian as well, or if Walker's character will remain retired.
Of course, before the Toretto family returns to the silver screen for the ninth installment in the main Fast and Furious saga in 2020, the series will take a detour into another corner of its ever-expanding mythology in 2019. A spin-off movie focusing on Dwayne Johnson's Luke Hobbs and Jason Statham's Deckard Shaw was recently announced, subsequently leading to a one-year delay for the next Fast and Furious movie. However, other reports have suggested that the delay was also a result of the franchise's effort to accommodate Justin Lin's return as series director -- something this post seems to corroborate.
While this has caused quite a bit of drama behind the scenes (particularly between Johnson and Tyrese Gibson), Diesel's Facebook video seems like a way of ensuring fans that the family-specific themes of the series remain intact. Mia is coming back, which will only ramp up the nostalgia factor for longtime fans.
CinemaBlend will bring you more information related to the ninth Fast and Furious film (as well as Jordana Brewster's involvement in it) as new details are made available. The Hobbs/Shaw spin-off is currently slated to debut in theaters on July 26, 2019, and Fast and Furious 9 will follow one year later on April 10, 2020. As for the next year, make sure to check out our 2017 movie premiere guide and our 2018 movie premiere guide to keep yourself in the loop on all of the most highly-anticipated silver screen debuts.
