Fast & Furious Director Reveals In-Joke He Had With Paul Walker

F9 Director Justin Lin revealed during a recent interview with Screen Rant that he and the late Paul Walker once joked about the Fast and the Furious franchise reaching a 68th sequel.

Lin and Walker initially began working together back in 2008 when filming the series’ fourth installment. Their collaboration continued until Fast and Furious 6. Walker, who portrayed Brian O’ Conner in the Fast and the Furious franchise, tragically passed away in November 2013 following a fiery car crash. At the time of Walker’s death, he was filming Furious 7.

The actor’s two brothers, Caleb and Cody, were famously used—in conjunction with digital editing software—as stand-ins to complete scenes that Walker had yet to film prior to his passing. The results, while commendable, were certainly lacking in some scenes. The final shot of Walker and Diesel’s O’Conner and Toretto silently bidding each other farewell, in particular, was considered ropey, even by contemporary standards.

The series is currently on its ninth installment. Lin provided fresh insight into his conversations with Walker while speaking to Screen Rant, stating that the pair had shared many ideas over how the franchise would inevitably end. He said:

I remember when I first met Paul and Vin when we were doing Fast Four. We just started talking about, if we’re lucky enough one day, what would be the final chapter? You could ask Vin. I know with Paul and I, I never thought that was real. I thought it was just a theoretical conversation. And we had talked about, ‘What would Fast 68 be?’ And sometimes we joke, but coming back and when Vin talking about the last chapter to the saga, I go back to those conversations that started in 2008. I think Brian lives on, but more importantly for me, Paul lives on because of those conversations. And I think every day I’m working on it, I’m trying to hopefully do that justice.

Despite alleged details surrounding the 10th and 11th installments of Fast and the Furious, no other information has been released.