HOLLYWOOD, California –
After bringing in over $200 million in domestic box office grosses in just over 2 weeks, and over a billion dollars worldwide, it was a no-brainer that the Fast and Furious franchise would continue after the success of the latest film, Furious 7. The movie, released April 3rd, marked the final installment in the series for Paul Walker, who played ex-police officer Brian O’Conner, when he died during filming of the movie in November of 2013.
The latest film gives a peaceful and loving tribute to the man who, by all accounts, was as much a loving family man off-screen as he was on. The ending of the movie has caused fans to shed more than a few tears, and that’s why it was with great amazement and surprise that the studio announced that the as-yet-untitled 8th film in the series, was set to star Paul Walker again – this time in a completely CGI-created way.
“Paul died during the filming of the seventh film, and we were able to finish his scenes using stand-ins with CGI-matted faces and voices taken from previous and other films,” said film producer Joe Goldsmith. “When we saw how great it came out, it became obvious that we could keep Paul alive in the next movie, via complete CGI.”
Many fans are saying that they think it’s a great idea, and that it will be nice to see Walker in another film, despite his untimely death.
“I think it’s an awesome idea,” said one fan on Twitter, who goes by the name @FaFFan4Eva. “I love Paul, and I’m glad he continue on. Vin Diesel says Paul always wanted at least 8 movies, so now there can be one! Also, now we can get other dead stars back in movies, too!”
Although no script has been written and no official announcement made for initial filming, producers are confident that the next Fast film will be the biggest yet.
“If you thought people came in droves to see our goodbye to Paul,” said Goldsmith. “just wait until you see them show up for his resurrection!”