Fast & Furious: 9 is set to drift into theaters this weekend, making it 20 years since the franchise first began.

They've come a long way from stealing cars and running from the law.

The ninth installment, titled F:9, marks a major departure from the plot of the original series.

Dominic Torretto (Vin Diesel) started off in the franchise as a prolific car mechanic and even better street racer.

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Now, he's saving the world, along with his crew, with fast cars, not-so-dead friends, and... spaceships.

Die-hard fans of the serious have raised some concerns after the first trailer for the movie dropped, revealing that another Fast & Furious character has come back from the dead: Han Lue.

More sneak peeks followed, teasing over-the-top stunts, family moments, and – it has to be said again – spaceships!

The upcoming release marks 20 years since the long-running series first graced the big screens.

We're taking a look back at all the highs and lows and what's next for Fast & Furious.

In 2011, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson made his explosive debut in Fast Five as agent Luke Hobbs.

Initially an antagonist to Dom and his crew, Luke eventually becomes an ally to the street racers, recruiting them to help take down criminals and take down the world.

But behind the scene, things weren't so chummy. In 2016, Dwayne and Vin Diesel were rumored not to be having issues with each other.

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The gossip was further fueled when costar Tyrese Gibson publicly slammed Dwayne for joining the spin-off, Fast & Furious Presents Hobbs & Shaw.

There was a lot of tit-for-tat between the three costars for some time. The Rock won't be reprising his role in the upcoming movie, but he and Vin did apparently settle their differences.

And since the former wrestler is now supposedly on good terms with Tyrese too, perhaps he'll be rejoining the fun soon.

Paul Walker, played Brian O' Connor, was initially a former cop who becomes Dom's right-hand man in the Fast & Furious series.

The character became a fan favorite and wildly popular.

However, on November 30, 2013, O' Connor was tragically killed in a car accident. The devastating crash shattered fans all across the world, but the effect it had on his castmates can still be felt to this day.

Paul's untimely death occurred in the middle of the production of Furious 7, which halted to honor the actor's memory. The late star's two younger brothers, Cody, and Caleb, stepped in for him to help finish filming.

However, there was still the question of how the character's story would end. Instead of letting the character get killed off, Vin decided to honor his friend by re-writing the ending of the film and retiring him off-screen.

The story has continued, the crew has grown, but since the series is set to come to an end with the tenth film, will there be any references to Walker's character to tie things off?

Speaking of characters returning, F9 pulled a fast one when it shockingly revealed that the long-dead character Han Lue is actually alive and well.

The character was seen trapped in a turned-over car before it exploded in Fast & Furious: Tokyo Drift.

Because the films weren't released in chronological order, the events of Tokyo Drift actually take place in the direct run up to Furious 7 and Han's death was revealed to be an act of revenge against Dom.

Fast-forward to F9 and it now appears that Han somehow – and "somehow" is doing a lot of work here – survived the blast and will rejoin his crew for another mission.

Han wouldn't be the first character in the franchise to have risen from the dead. Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez) was also killed off, only to returned in the sixth movie.

So, we're quite sure the film will explain Han's survival but also begs the question: is the franchise pushing its limits with these comebacks?

The ninth installment will follow the now-retired Dom, who has settled down with Letty and his son, Brian.

Their peaceful life is interrupted by Dom's long-lost brother, Jakob, who has a score to settle with his elder sibling.

Those who have watched the series since the beginning probably were left baffled by the news that John Cena would be taking on the role of the younger Toretto.

A very big reason is that there was never any mention of this character before – and there's been a lot time to at least drop a casual reference in there, establishing that Dom has a brother.

Nevertheless, the former wrestler will be teaming up with another one of Dom's archnemeses, Cipher (Charlize Theron).

So what do Dom and his team need to take down a cyberterrorist and a criminal mastermind? Really fast cars, of course!

F9 promises to provide action-packed sequences and out-of-this-world stunts, which should please loyal fans. But for those looking for a deeper meaning to the story, Vin Diesel has made it pretty clear that family is what makes the Toretto team so strong.

It'll be interesting to see how the backstory between the siblings led to this epic rivalry. Plus, there's also the explanation of how a rocket car is going to space, or even why for that manner.

Fast & Furious has two more films that will be released before closing the story. Are we in store for more surprises? Is the franchise now pure overkill? We're all about to find out!