RIP Paul Walker - FAST & FURIOUS 7 "Touching, Satisfying"

[DavidBanner]

Mike, your take on it sounds absolutely right.

[Eric W.]

Mike, your take on it sounds absolutely right.

Agreed.

[AndyDursin]

TMZ story claims a number of "critical" scenes involving Walker were to be shot next week, so if that's the case, then they have a much larger issue trying to figure out where to go with his character. Is the easiest solution to cut his involvement in the movie altogether and write him out? It's an ensemble film, but there are limits to what you can do if there's only so much footage of him they can use. Even with digital effects, it could necessitate a bizarre TRAIL OF THE PINK PANTHER like approach of using fragments of disparate footage to piece a storyline together with his character.

Then again, until we know what was shot and what kind of footage they had, it's impossible to really know. Have they shot the concluding scenes? Are most of the character scenes finished? Is it just stunt work/set pieces they haven't shot? It'd certainly be a lot easier to fudge his involvement in the latter than the former.

[AndyDursin]

Interesting Hollywood Reporter article on the insurance angle...

Paul Walker's Death: Why 'Fast & Furious 7's' Insurer May Decide Movie's Fate

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/p ... ast-661727

[AndyDursin]

Universal has formally delayed the film. I don't for a second believe the franchise is done -- but you wonder if this particular installment isn't going to be heavily overhauled or scrapped depending on what's been shot.

http://www.deadline.com/2013/12/univers ... ore-646946

Universal Pictures has formalized something that seemed obvious since the weekend. The studio has indefinitely postponed production on Fast & Furious 7 following the tragic death of Paul Walker in a car accident that occurred while the cast and crew were on a holiday break. I’ve seen reams of web speculation, even one traffic grabber that the studio might scrap the film, and wow it all seems so creepy to me. Work on the half-done production would have resumed two days ago. The studio, the director James Wan, writer Chris Morgan and producer Neal Moritz have just begun trying to figure out what to do to keep this billion dollar franchise alive.

It seems fairly obvious the film will not make its July 2014 release date, and it also feels highly unlikely they will shoot a foot of film before the end of this year. Beyond allowing a mourning period for the traumatized cast and crew to get past the death of an actor who I’m told was the kind of guy who knew the names of everybody on the crew, there are major creative hurdles to overcome here. It is laudable of the studio and filmmakers to factor all of these variables and take the time to make the right decision before bringing everyone back to work. I don’t think there is a chance that the studio would abandon the franchise, as has been speculated elsewhere. Here is a formal statement by the studio:

“Right now, all of us at Universal are dedicated to providing support to Paul’s immediate family and our extended Fast & Furious family of cast, crew and filmmakers. At this time we feel it is our responsibility to shut down production on Fast & Furious 7 for a period of time so we can assess all options available to move forward with the franchise. We are committed to keeping Fast & Furious fans informed, and we will provide further information to them when we have it. Until then, we know they join us in mourning the passing of our dear friend Paul Walker.”

[Mike Skerritt]

Interesting Hollywood Reporter article on the insurance angle...

Paul Walker's Death: Why 'Fast & Furious 7's' Insurer May Decide Movie's Fate

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/p ... ast-661727

Odd that this piece didn't mention BOURNE as Universal's other big live-action franchises. Maybe they want to forget LEGACY too.

It just seems to me that both from a creative standpoint and a financial standpoint, the easiest thing to do is scrap what they have and start over. I hope that's what they do.

[Eric W.]

Makes sense. They need to take their time on the decision making for this movie.


http://omg.yahoo.com/blogs/celeb-news/p ... 38201.html

[AndyDursin]

It just seems to me that both from a creative standpoint and a financial standpoint, the easiest thing to do is scrap what they have and start over. I hope that's what they do.

I feel the same. It all depends on how much Walker was involved in the story, and how much footage they had of his left to go.

[AndyDursin]

Interesting tidbits in this Fox News article, with a source saying it could be canceled outright. The latter section of this article is also something I believe is a concern, and that's you can't just kill Walker's character off in a car wreck...it'd be the easiest way out, but it's not the right way to go.

A source confirmed to FOX411, as first reported by entertainment industry trade The Wrap, that the nearly $200 million production may be canned altogether as the power players ponder how best to preserve the integrity of the franchise. The film is said to be more than halfway complete, although many integral scenes featuring Walker were not shot.

The cast and crew were on Thanksgiving hiatus and slated to return to the Atlanta, GA set this week but production was promptly shut down immediately after the tragedy.

Speculation is also now said to be swirling over whether to start over with a fresh script sans Walker’s character, the leading role of Brian O’Conner, but one source connected to the film told us that that would likely be more problematic.

“They (filmmakers) should understand that Paul was the essential character. But his character did have a baby,” noted the insider. “They could finish it here and pick it up ten years later.”

Nonetheless, the decision of next steps will likely not be made for at least a week or two. And losing the seventh installment would be a huge blow given that the “Fast” franchise remains one of the most successful of all time, and has made more than $2.3 billion worldwide for the first six over the past eleven years.

TheWrap also reported that the conversation between the movie’s key decision makers has now moved away from the possibility of using special effects to put Walker’s face on another actor’s body, and the studio is particularly concerned about the sensitivity of losing an actor to a high-performance car crash in a movie that ultimately glorifies street racing.

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/20 ... twitter_fn

[DavidBanner]

Given that they need some time to rethink the movie, and given that they were going to be losing this week completely, it was inevitable that they would have to shut down until January. Otherwise, they'd be rushing to only get a few days' work done before the holiday break. This way, they have the full month of December to figure out what they're going to do.

My gut says that they will not scrap the movie or try to start over. I think they'll try to find a tasteful way to use the footage they already have with him, which may involve reshooting some of the scenes that had him in it. They'll try to find a tasteful way to eliminate the character from the franchise, and they'll rebuild the second half of the movie, or as much of it as they can, to move on without the character. Given the larger ensemble they've established, it seems clear that they should be able to do this. But this is very touchy stuff.

[Edmund Kattak]

Given that they need some time to rethink the movie, and given that they were going to be losing this week completely, it was inevitable that they would have to shut down until January. Otherwise, they'd be rushing to only get a few days' work done before the holiday break. This way, they have the full month of December to figure out what they're going to do.

My gut says that they will not scrap the movie or try to start over. I think they'll try to find a tasteful way to use the footage they already have with him, which may involve reshooting some of the scenes that had him in it. They'll try to find a tasteful way to eliminate the character from the franchise, and they'll rebuild the second half of the movie, or as much of it as they can, to move on without the character. Given the larger ensemble they've established, it seems clear that they should be able to do this. But this is very touchy stuff.

Yes, I agree. They should use that funeral scene from the the blue ray as an opener - fade to black - then flash ahead to 10 months later. Everyone mourns his loss due to unexpected cancer, passing away with dignity with family by his side. You don't need to see that onscreen, but feel it through the immediate people impacted by it (Diesel, Brewster). Then you hit hard with the Statham vengeance stuff when they are at the most vulnerable and they have to find the will to deal with that, while mourning. Yeah, it's supposed to be an action film and have some actually have some comedy to it - not to make it a complete downer - but I think they can work it out with good writers and careful approach. All is not lost, but there is not enough distance from this tragedy to make these kind of decisions just yet. And, I guess you have to give the audience a little credit here. Given anyone who has even a passing interest in this film franchise, I'd say there would'nt be much objection to something along these lines - if it were done tastefully and respectfully, while acknowledging what this franchise is all about. Time will heal, and tell.

[AndyDursin]

Interesting article at the Hollywood Reporter this morning.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/p ... s-7-664815

A few extracts:

Sources say writer Chris Morgan now is at work crafting revisions to the script that Universal execs hope can retire Walker's character from the series using scenes already shot. If he succeeds, cast and crew could be called back to work by late January -- but that's a big if.

Studio chairman Donna Langley -- in her first major leadership test since being promoted in September -- and production co-president Jeffrey Kirschenbaum, the lead exec on the Fast movies, were designated to run point on finding a creative solution for the franchise. According to a knowledgeable source, the studio already has poured about $150 million into the film, a bill that its insurance firm, Fireman's Fund, might have to pay in full if Universal concludes the picture must be started anew. Fireman's Fund declined comment, as did Universal.

The wreck of the Porsche Carrera GT creates a uniquely nightmarish scenario for Universal. In addition to losing the star of its most important live-action franchise -- a series about fast cars -- in a devastating crash, the accident occurred when the film was well underway but nowhere near completion. "Almost exactly half of his role was done," says one source. Another says Walker was scheduled for considerable work on the film the week following his death.

Insurance broker Brian Kingman of Gallagher Entertainment says Universal executives could determine that footage shot cannot be salvaged. The applicable standard is that the abandonment must be "reasonable, practical and necessary" -- should Universal conclude that's the case, the burden would be on Fireman's Fund to prove otherwise or pay the claim. "If I were the broker, I would [calculate] how many days had already been captured, how many were left," says Kingman. "I would look at the original arc of the story and get input from the director, the producers and the studio as to why, notwithstanding the financial impact, the story doesn't make sense to complete. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work. The studio should not have to make a movie it doesn't want to make to accommodate an insurance company."

A Universal source says based on fan reaction, there is support for completing the version of the movie that was underway, even though it is said to contain several car crashes. "What will drive everything is, is there an honorable and sensible way to do this?" says the source, but "there's not really a road map" for the situation.

While a January restart is the goal, it is far from certain. Sources say the film's July 11 release has been scrapped (Fox moved its Dawn of the Planet of the Apes to that slot). But insiders are confident Universal will release a seventh Fast and probably an eighth. "I actually believe [the tragedy] will add to returns," says a rival studio exec. A Universal insider agrees: "Sadly, it will probably make people more interested."

[Edmund Kattak]

Looks like they're making interesting efforts to finish this.

Paul Walker's brother to fill in for late star in 'Fast & Furious 7?'

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/20 ... p=features

[Monterey Jack]

Why do I have the feeling that the attempts to work around the footage Walker completed are going to be about as convincing as Game Of Death or Plan 9 From Outer Space? Maybe they can have a stand-in holding a cape over his face for the new scenes...

[AndyDursin]

Sounds like they just need a stand-in for special effect sequences. Things have come a ways since the '90s when they had to do it with Oliver Reed in Gladiator and Brandon Lee in The Crow (and it was obvious especially in the former's case)...it might be noticeable if you're looking for it, but if that's all they're going to need him for, then it's probably not going to stick out.