It has been almost six years since the untimely and tragic passing of Paul Walker. The actor was one of the most revered stars in Hollywood and a catalyst for the Fast & Furious franchise. Today, insider DanielRPK revealed via Twitter that Walker’s character Brian, who hasn’t been seen on the big screen since 2015’s Furious 7, will be returning for the series’ ninth installment.

It's been long enough. They are bringing back Paul Walker's character, Brian, to FF9. https://t.co/320dprmC1S — Daniel Richtman (@DanielRPK) November 14, 2019

Walker’s passing happened while Furious 7 was still in production. Filming was delayed for script rewrites and his brothers, Caleb and Cody Walker, were used to complete his remaining scenes. These script rewrites completed the story arcs for both Walker and his on-screen wife Jordana Brewster’s characters, which were retired.

Additionally, it was previously reported that Brewster is returning for the film. However, it is not currently known in what capacity she or Walker’s Brian will return.

It did seem as if the franchise had moved on from Brian following the events of Furious 7. During 2017’s The Fate of the Furious, the team mentions bringing Brian in before that idea was quickly shut down. The end of the film saw Vin Deisel’s Dominic naming his son Brian in remembrance. Many fans assumed this would be the last they heard of Paul Walker’s character.

Recently, the notion of bringing back deceased actors has been a widely discussed topic on social media. It was reported by Variety that a company called Worldwide XR would be working to digitally bring back actors like James Dean to appear in future films.

What do you think of the return of Paul Walker in the upcoming Fast film? Do you think his character had a satisfying conclusion? Let us know in the comments!

Fast and Furious 9 comes to theaters on May 22, 2020.

The movie stars Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Ludacris, Tyrese Gibson, John Cena, Helen Mirren, Cardi B, and Charlize Theron.