Vin Diesel says Jordana Brewster, director Justin Lin are returning for 'Fast 9'

Oct. 26 (UPI) -- Vin Diesel announced on social media Wednesday that the next installment in the Fast and Furious franchise will bring back star Jordana Brewster and director Justin Lin.

Diesel reunited with the pair while visiting a "kick-ass set" for Fast and Furious 9. "On the road back to our roots...Family reunited!" the actor captioned a selfie of himself on Instagram with Brewster and Lin.

Diesel went into further detail about meeting up with Lin and Brewster and how they will be used to make the upcoming sequel special in a Facebook Live video.

"Justin Lin is so old school, he's so part of the DNA of the Fast mythology, that while we're on set today, the one person he wanted to be here immediately, just as he started to feel that sense of Dom, that sense of Toretto, that sense of the Fast and Furious universe and the responsibility of that... he wanted someone who is a part of the brotherhood, when you go past gender. He wanted someone very important to be here, and it's someone you all have been asking for," Diesel says in the video before panning over to Brewster.

Brewster, who has portrayed Diesel's sister throughout the series, was not featured in 2017's Fate of the Furious as her character Mia Torretto was last seen settling down with the late Paul Walker's character in Furious 7.

Lin, meanwhile, whom Diesel referred to as the "forefather" and "architect" of the series, previously helmed the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth installments.

"You wanted 9 and 10 to be incredible. We've heard your concerns about the saga and where it needs to arrive in its final chapters," Diesel continued, hinting that Brewster and Lin may also be a part of Fast and Furious 10 which is expected to wrap up the long-running action series.

Fast and Furious 9 is expected to arrive in theaters on April 10, 2020 after it was delayed from its original April 19, 2019 release date. Franchise star Tyrese Gibson has blamed his co-star Dwayne Johnson for the delay as the former WWE Superstar is headlining a spinoff film alongside Jason Statham.

Notably, Brewster's inclusion in Fast and Furious 9 fits within the demands of series star Michelle Rodriguez who threatened to leave the franchise in June due to not showing enough "love" to female stars.

"F8 is out digitally today, I hope they decide to show some love to the women of the franchise on the next one. Or I just might have to say goodbye to a loved franchise," she wrote at the time.