This summer will see the ninth installment in the Fast and Furious series hit theaters. In an era where franchise fatigue has plagued multiple movie series, the Vin Diesel-led muscle car action saga is still going strong nine films in. Whereas many franchises fizzle out after two or three films, F&F continues to get bigger, adding more stars and even bigger set pieces to keep audiences coming back for more. After nearly two decades of intense action, it's easy to forget the franchise started with a street-racing movie, and by the late 2000s, it was nearly in danger of leaving the public eye.

It all started in 2001 with the release of the first film, The Fast and the Furious. The movie followed undercover cop Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker), who is tasked with bringing down Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his crew of street racers/hijackers. It was a solid yet unspectacular film that still managed to become a box-office success thanks to its racing scenes and likable characters.

RELATED: It's Not If The Fast & Furious Will Go To Space, But When

The film was quickly followed by two sequels: 2 Fast 2 Furious in 2003 and The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift in 2006. Both films featured the same blend of street racing and undercover action as the first film, but centered on new characters that would later become franchise regulars like Roman Pierce (Tyrese Gibson), Tej Parker (Ludacris) and Han Seoul-Oh (Sung Kang).

Tokyo Drift was also the first film in the series to be directed by Justin Lin, who would go on to direct the fourth, fifth, sixth, ninth and possibly tenth installments. Like the original film, reviews for the second and third entries in the franchise were lukewarm but the box office was relatively strong, though Tokyo Drift still remains the lowest-grossing in the series. Realizing this, Universal planned a big reunion for the next F&F feature.

The fourth entry, 2009's Fast & Furious, saw the return of Diesel's Toretto along with his sister, Mia (Jordana Brewster), and girlfriend, Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), as well as Walker's O'Conner. The film's tagline boasted "New Model, Original Parts." It once again followed Toretto and O'Conner, this time working together to take down a Mexican drug dealer.

Like the first film, F4 balanced street racing with flashy action, albeit with bigger set pieces than the series was initially known for. The narrative's timeline also shifted with a story that took place between the second and third films so old characters could return. Despite unfavorable reviews, the film broke box-office records and established a precedent for the next two films to follow.

RELATED: Dwayne Johnson Ends Vin Diesel Feud, Teases Fast & Furious Crossover

Fast Five from 2011 is recognized as the transitional film in the series, moving away from street racing and fully into outrageous action. It brought back several old characters, like Roman and Tej, and introduced a few new ones, the biggest being Dwayne Johnson's Hobbs. The set pieces got bigger and more physics-defying, especially in the signature sequence involving Toretto and O'Conner driving a safe down a busy street while avoiding police. The film's embrace of big, unique action scenes led to more positive reviews from critics, and better reviews led to the biggest box office returns the series had seen to date.

The next film, 2013's Fast & Furious 6, went even bigger, with the crew outracing a war tank and taking down a giant airplane. The plot also got even crazier, with a story revolving around the team being recruited by the government to take down an ex-mercenary and saving an amnesiac Letty. The sixth film was even more critically acclaimed and made even more money than the fifth.

By the time 2015's Furious 7 and 2017's The Fate of the Furious arrived, the series had completed its transformation into a bona fide action juggernaut. The set pieces were increasingly outlandish, the cast larger and each plot more ridiculous than the next, but that was all part of the fun.

Even after the tragic death of Paul Walker, the series' winning formula enabled it to maintain its place as one of the most popular franchises around, with the seventh installment being the first in the series to crack a billion dollars worldwide. With a planned tenth installment, a Netflix animated series, a successful spinoff film and another spinoff in the works, there's plenty of gas still left in this long-running franchise's tank.

Directed by Justin Lin, Fast & Furious 9 stars Vin Diesel, John Cena, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel and Sung Kang with Helen Mirren, Charlize Theron and Cardi B. The film arrives in theaters May 22.

NEXT: Bad Boys vs Fast & Furious Is The Crossover We Need