Fast 9 End Credits Scene Explained

Is there an end credits scene in Fast and Furious 9 (F9)? The short answer is yes, there is, so make sure you stay through the credits if you head out to see it in theaters. Fast 9 is something of a new beginning for the Fast Saga, as the ninth film not-so-subtly acknowledges that the franchise has expanded in a big way, with many new lanes of story to explore - while also making sure to address some lingering old ones. As such, it should come as little surprise that the lager cinematic universe of the Fast Saga comes with another Marvel-style post-credits scene teasing what's next.

Warning: F9 SPOILERS Follow!!!!

What Happens In The Fast 9 End Credits Scene?

After all the espionage twist and international vehicular mayhem of F9, we get an end credits scene (mid-credits, technically) that takes things in a different direction. The scene opens in a bunker-style lair where a man in a hooded sweatshirt is getting a workout in on a punching bag. When the boxer breaks for a moment, it's revealed to be Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), and his punching bag is revealed to be some unlucky crook he's stuffed inside the bag and is beating senseless. A knock at the door gives both men pause, and Shaw goes to see who it is. When he opens the door, Deckard is freaked out to see that Han (Sung Kang) is on his doorstep.

F9 End Credits Scene Explained

During the course of F9 we learn that Han is still alive because he was recruited by Kur Russell's CIA agent "Mr. Nobody," to protect the Aries doomsday device and the young girl, Elle (Anna Sawai), who is the key to unlocking it. However, when Dominic Toretto's (Vin Diesel) brother Jakob (John Cena) betrayed Mr. Nobody, the agency used Deckard Shaw to fake Han's death so he could go into hiding, assigned to protect Elle and the Aries device.

So, the question (and the drama) the Fast 9 end credits scene raises is: how much beef is there still between Han and Deckard Shaw?

Right now, it doesn't seem like Deckard was in on the operation to fake Han's death - judging by his reaction to seeing Han alive. However, Fast and Furious fans have been demanding to see "#JusticeForHan" for years now, and this may finally be that moment!

Han & Shaw

The Fast and Furious franchise painted itself into a big continuity corner by transforming Jason Statham's Deckard Shaw into a major anti-hero of the franchise. Furious 7 made Deckard out to be the ultimate killer badass mercenary, who killed Han in cold blood. That move was already a major retcon of Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, which originally depicted Han dying in a racing accident. By The Fate of the Furious the entire Shaw family was re-positioned in the franchise: Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) was revealed to be still alive after Fast and the Furious 6, while Queenie Shaw (Hele Mirren) and Deckard Shaw (Statham) became allies of Dom and/or Luke Hobbs (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson), with eventually being revealed to be a good spy who was betrayed and exiled by his organization.

When Deckard Shaw and Luke Hobbs got their own Hobbs & Shaw spinoff film, a lot of longtime Fast Saga fans took umbrage: They asked why the man who murdered Han was being turned into a hero of the franchise, with no apparent reprecussions for his actions?

Well, F9 attempts yet another Fast and Furious retcon, by saying 'no harm, no foul' in Han and Deckard's history: Deckard never really killed Han, so no #JusticeForHan is necessary; and whether it was through manipulation or willful participation, Deckard did what "the good guys" needed him to do, so the heroic underpinning to his character is still valid.

F9 is now playing in theaters.