Sheriff deputies work near the wreckage of a Porsche sports car that crashed into a light pole. Photo: AP
It is understood that a substantial amount of the film had already been shot, but Walker and other cast members still had additional scenes to complete.
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Tributes poured out for the star, with the film's director James Wan tweeting: “I am so beyond heartbroken right now. I can't process anything”.Sources say that many of the remaining cast members, such as Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson, have no intention of returning to set any time soon, stating: “No one wants to even think about the movie. Period.”
There is precedent for this tragic situation, with Heath Ledger's death not affecting the post-production and marketing for The Dark Knight, as well as seeing Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law continue on Ledger's role in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.
Although it's a slightly different situation, as Walker is certainly more ingrained with The Fast and the Furious franchise than Ledger was with either of those projects and so it creates a genuine dilemma for the studio going forward. It will now be a question of considering how effectively the film can be marketed with the face of the franchise having passed away, as well as the method that the tragedy occurred.
Walker featured in five of the six installments of the popular series, and dedicated a substantial amount of his spare time to charity; when killed, he was leaving an event for his charity Reach Out Worldwide, for the victims of Typhoon Haiyan.
Paul Walker of The Fast and the Furious movies has died in a car accident. Photo: Getty Images
The Fast and the Furious 7 was scheduled for a release in July of 2014, and it will now being a struggle to complete the movie on time, if at