Following the shocking death of Fast and Furious franchise star Paul Walker late last year, and the production delays that pushed the seventh film from a summer 2014 release to the spring of 2015, it’s probably safe to assume that morale is at an all-time low. Paul Walker was beloved by his peers, and one of franchise co-star Vin Diesel’s best friends in real life, so continuing Fast & Furious 7 without him must be a truly heartbreaking endeavor for all involved.
Walker’s brothers Caleb and Cody have been brought in to complete his performance – through the magic of face-replacement special effects – in order to give his character a proper send-off, and things have surely become quite emotional on set. Today, a new report from THR suggests that Diesel is succumbing to that emotional pressure and causing a bit of a headache for everyone else:
According to sources, star Vin Diesel has been so difficult that some on set have fantasized about using the facial-replacement technology being deployed to put Walker in the film as a sub for Diesel as well.
That may be a bit harsh, but explanations about his behavior from other insiders sheds some more light on the situation:
“Vin spent the whole day in his trailer one day. The next day, they waited four hours for him. He called a meeting of studio execs to his trailer for two-and-a-half hours to say, ‘What the f— am I doing here?’ The next day, work was done with doubles.”
THR says that the progress on the film has slow and frustrating, which is understandable. I can’t even imagine what an emotional toll a production like this would take on those involved, especially since Walker has been at the heart of the franchise since the beginning.
According to Universal Pictures chairman Donna Langley, the accusations about Diesel’s behavior are invalid:
“This production is working through some challenges that are historically unprecedented. The crew and cast, led by Vin, have been nothing but terrific under these circumstances.”
Despite these emotional setbacks, it appears that Fast & Furious 7 will still be racing its way to theaters on April 10th, 2015.