Anna Daniels
Despite all the fan backlash, Han’s treatment in the saga has gone largely unmatched. No other character’s death has been replayed three times across three movies, with each rehashing offering fuel for subsequent character and plot development. And before F9, the only other character revived by the saga was Dom’s childhood friend, fellow racer, and eventual wife, Letty (Michelle Rodriguez). But not even her presumed death convinced Lin to alter the creative and narrative future of a billion-dollar franchise just to keep her around for a few more movies.
Even with an arc that has spanned more than half of the franchise’s releases, Han’s posthumous treatment still left a bad taste in fans’ mouths. It continued his legacy as a character unparalleled in his Fast saga development, but now for all the wrong reasons. While many other deaths in Toretto’s crew resulted in the big villain’s demise, Han’s retconned killer Deckard Shaw not only lived, but was also then invited to be part of Dom’s family before being entrusted by the crew leader to retrieve his kidnapped baby in Fate of the Furious. Shaw also happens to be only one of two former Fast villains to receive his very own title credit with the franchise spin-off film Hobbs & Shaw, co-starring Dwayne Johnson as Luke Hobbs.
Fans noticed that inconsistency in character treatment, and as each new development nail was hammered into Han’s fictional coffin, they made sure the saga’s creative team knew how they felt — replying to news on social media with #JusticeforHan, and asking questions in person at any chance they got. That persistence and commitment to their message helped Kang understand why fans weren’t letting this go. “When Shaw came in and was revealed to be the killer and got invited into the family fold … that’s where you went, ‘Well, is this character being respected?'” he told the Los Angeles Times.
Written by: Looper
