Paul Walker is a famous Hollywood actor, star of the Fast and Furious film franchise, who died tragically on November 30, 2013. He was in a car accident while in the passenger seat of a sports car.
What Paul Walker is known for
Paul Walker was born on September 12, 1973 in Glendale, California. His mother was a famous model, and his father was an economist who later started his own business. Paul has two younger brothers, Caleb Michael and Cody Bo, as well as two younger sisters, Ashley and Amy. As a kid with a pretty good looks, Paul received several invitations to shoot in TV commercials. This had a significant impact on his future career, and in his biography he repeatedly pointed out that it was then that he firmly decided to become an actor.
From 1994 to 2000, Paul Walker starred in several low-budget films, including:
- Tammy and T-Rex;
- "Meet the Didles";
- Pleasantville;
- "That's all she is."
In 2001, he received an invitation to shoot already in the big-budget film Fast and Furious, in which he played with such famous actors as:
- Vin Diesel;
- Michelle Rodriguez;
- Matt Schultz.
In the film, which tells the story of the life of illegal street racers, Paul got the role of a police officer undercover Brian O'Connor, who infiltrates a gang of robber racers and tries to bring them to clean water. Unexpectedly, the project became a box office hit, and in 2003 the sequel "The Fast and the Furious" was released, where Paul Walker played with Tyrese Gibson and Eva Mendes.
From 2003 to 2008, Walker starred in popular films such as:
- "Welcome to Paradise!";
- "Run without looking back";
- "White captivity" and others.
In 2009, Paul returned to the role of Brian O'Connor in the sequel to The Fast and the Furious along with the cast from the first part. Subsequently, films about racers were released every two years. The tragedy that led to the death of the actor occurred almost immediately after the release of the sixth part of "Fast and the Furious" and during the filming of its continuation.
What happened to Paul Walker
On November 30, 2013, 40-year-old Paul Walker and his close friend, 38-year-old Roger Rodas attended a charity event to raise funds for the victims of the typhoon in the Philippines. Then Roger got behind the wheel of a Porsche Carrera GT sports car and Paul got into the passenger seat to drive home. Not far from Los Angeles, in the California town of Santa Clarita, a car crashed into a lamp post and caught fire. Both men died instantly.
The police and reporters who arrived at the scene of the accident, by the nature of the damage to the car, suggested that the driver had committed a gross violation of the speed limit and lost control. The nature of the damage indicated that the vehicle was moving at a speed of at least 130–150 km / h instead of the 72 km / h permitted on this section of the road. The blow was so strong that neither the fastened seat belts nor the deployed airbags rescued the passengers. A full-fledged investigation was immediately launched, with the Department of Investigation and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department joining in.
Investigation into the death of Paul Walker
Representatives of law enforcement agencies found that the car's mileage at the time of the accident was no more than 5, 4 thousand km, and the driver had significant driving experience. Suspicions arose that someone else could be involved in the accident, for example, an ill-wisher who could cause a breakdown in a sports car while the owners were at a charity meeting.
For a more accurate determination of the causes of the accident, experts conducted a study of the car's computer and took readings from all video cameras that were installed along the route of the car. This made it possible to recreate a complete picture of the incident. In addition, Porsche personally sent the best engineers to California to review the 2005 sports car. As a result, it was found that there were no problems with the electrical and mechanical systems of the car at the time of the accident.
An autopsy was carried out on the victims, which established that none of their passengers had consumed alcoholic beverages or drugs before the trip. Thus, the final cause of the accident and death of people is called reckless driving with significant speeding.
Porsche said the car was fitted with wheels that had been in use for about nine years, even though tires need to be changed every four years. This could significantly impair the handling of the sports car. Small problems with the brake discs were also found, but they could not by themselves lead to such a serious accident.
Another revealed detail during the inspection was that the car was repeatedly refined in order to increase its speed characteristics. However, the accident was caused exclusively by the human factor: the driver deliberately increased the speed on the section of the road where it is prohibited.
Events after the death of the actor
Paul Walker's funeral, attended by family members and colleagues on the set, was held on December 3, 2013 in California. He is survived by a daughter, Madow Rain, who was born in 1998 to ex-girlfriend Rebecca Soteros. At the time of his death, only 40% of the scenes of the movie "Fast and Furious 7" with the actor were filmed, but it was decided to continue the work in memory of him. The specialists announced that they want to complete the scenes with the participation of stunt doubles and the use of computer animation.
In the spring of 2015, the grand film premiere of the seventh part of the franchise about street racers took place, in which the world saw the tragically dead Paul Walker for the last time. As it became known, his brothers Caleb Michael and Cody Bo, very similar to Paul, replaced him in several scenes, and their faces were changed using CGI and animation. Of course, in some episodes, Paul Walker himself appeared, who managed to take part in the filming.
The place of death of the actor is still one of the most visited Los Angeles County. Everyone on the Santa Clarita suburban highway pays attention to him. Traces of a terrible accident are still visible on the lamp post, which the car collided with. Numerous fans constantly decorate this place with bouquets of fresh flowers. A close friend of Paul Walker and filming partner Vin Diesel subsequently repeatedly turned to fans of the film franchise with a request to always observe the speed limit on the roads and not forget that life can tragically end at any moment.
