How Han Faked His Death In Fast & Furious 9 Explained In Detail

The Fast & Furious franchise has finally explained how Han survived his car crash nearly a year and a half after the first F9 confirmed the character’s return. Sung Kang’s appearance as the beloved character highlighted the sequel’s first-look footage, but it garnered more questions than answers. Though F9 explains how Han lived to see another day, mysteries still linger.

Han’s Fast Saga debut came in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift as Sean Boswell’s (Lucas Black) friend and mentor. Despite serving as Han’s entry into the core saga, the character was actually introduced in Justin Lin’s pre-Fast & Furious movie, Better Luck Tomorrow. Han didn’t make it out alive in Tokyo Drift, but he ended up appearing in three franchise sequels and the short film, Los Bandoleros, emerging as a vital member of Dominic Toretto’s (Vin Diesel) crew. His status as a fan-favorite convinced Lin to bring back Kang, but it took some tinkering with the Fast & Furious timeline.

To justify Han’s involvement in sequels like Fast & Furious, Fast Five, and Fast & Furious 6, Tokyo Drift’s spot along the timeline was shifted. Based on the current Fast & Furious continuity, the events of Tokyo Drift were said to take place after Fast & Furious 6. Though Han’s death came back into play in Furious 7, the character wasn’t gone for long. He unearths in F9 just in time to assist Dom and his old friends in the battle against Jakob Toretto (John Cena), adding insight into his survival and whereabouts.

How Han Died (Originally & Furious 7 Retcon)

Shortly after Sean relocated to Tokyo, Japan, Han stepped up to guide the lost soul. Sean, who instantly got off on the wrong foot with the current Drift King, Takashi (Brian Tee), fell into the racing scene. Despite destroying one of Han’s cars, Han offered to mentor Sean to become a skilled drifter with a chance at going toe-to-toe with Takashi. Han, meanwhile, was secretly stealing money from a Yakuza boss who happened to be Takashi’s uncle. After being confronted with this fact, Han jumped into his Mazda RX-7 FD and tried to flee from Takashi and his henchman. The pursuit ended when Han’s car was T-boned by a Mercedes in an intersection, flipping his car before it burst into flames, presumably killing him.

Due to the timeline shift, Han returned for the next three sequels with Fast & Furious 6, further explaining Han’s demise. In the credits scene, it was revealed Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) was the man behind the Mercedes who purposely T-boned Han. Considering Dom’s crew sent Deckard’s brother, Owen (Luke Evans), to the hospital following the events of Fast & Furious 6, Deckard sought out revenge. The actual event played out in Furious 7, retconning Han’s death to play into Deckard’s eye-for-an-eye mission. Deckard left Dom’s silver cross necklace at the scene of the accident as a dire message to the group, setting off the conflict in Furious 7.

Why Han Faked His Death

When Han was revealed to be alive in F9’s trailer, various theories arose to explain his survival. Perhaps Han crawled into a manhole before the car caught on fire? Or maybe a mysterious figure pulled him from the wreckage. However, it turns out Han helped faked his own death with the help of Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell), proving he was in on the plan the entire time.

With Tokyo Drift taking place after Fast & Furious 6, Han ended up in Japan after making plans to stay in the country with Gisele Yashar (Gal Gadot) before her tragic death. In F9, a flashback reveals a meeting between Han and Mr. Nobody in Tokyo where the government agent states he had a history of working with Gisele. Since he was always able to trust her, Mr. Nobody tries to enlist Han as a member of his covert-ops team. Without a purpose following Gisele’s death, Han takes the offer with a role that involves recovering a device called Project Ares. When explaining to Dom and his friends why he faked his death, Han states: “My death became the best way to stay alive.” Apparently, going off the grid was Han’s only viable choice to carry on with his life without Gisele.

How Did Mr. Nobody Fake Han’s Death?

With F9’s confirmation that Han never died during the events of Tokyo Drift and Furious 7, the focus turns to how exactly the plan was carried out. The logistics of the plan fell to Mr. Nobody, who had enough resources on hand to successfully set up Han’s “death.” Granted, timing became the key to the plan, which worked out perfectly after Mr. Nobody and Han caught wind of Deckard’s travels to Tokyo with plans of revenge. Somehow, the pair knew when Deckard would go after Han, setting the plan in place.

While F9 takes the time to outline Han’s faked death, there are certainly some aspects that still need explaining. As Takashi was chasing Kang’s character through the streets of Tokyo, Deckard was targeting Han before causing the fiery wreck. As the car burst into flames, it seemed as though Han was still trapped in the car. However, he was standing next to Mr. Nobody, watching the event unfold nearby, completely out of harm’s way, hinting that some sort of hologram was used. According to Mr. Nobody, a “magic trick” was used to fake Han’s death, and it apparently wasn’t even one of his best, but it worked nonetheless. Everyone outside of Mr. Nobody’s secret bubble believed Han had perished.

What Han Has Been Doing Since Faking His Death

Seeing as Mr. Nodoby’s plan worked so well, Han was able to join the covert ops team, switching his focus to Project Ares. As Han broke into the home of two scientists to recover the device, a team of armed agents killed the homeowners. Rather than just escape with the device, Han stayed behind to save the scientists’ 11-year-old daughter, Elle (Anna Sawai). He then emerged as her primary caregiver, vowing to protect her, considering she was the key to unlocking the Project Ares device with her DNA.

Keeping Elle safe is Han’s primary mission from his “death” to the moment he reunites with Dom and the others. In that time, he lives a secluded life without cluing in his friends about his survival. As he explains, playing dead was his best chance of living and carrying out his mission to protect Elle. Of course, that changes when Jakob gets his hands on the device and Elle, but Han shows no reluctance in putting his life on the line for those he considers family, including the old Tokyo Drift crew. With the plan to use Project Ares thwarted and Elle deemed safe by the end of F9, Han now has a new chance to live his life out in the open. Granted, he will surely volunteer to help Dom and the group when the next conflict arises.