14 DAY TRIAL // Paul Walker died in November 2013 in a one-vehicle car crash, leaving behind a daughter and family members and fans who still can’t believe he’s gone. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is one of them: a friend and co-star on the “Fast & Furious” franchise, The Rock says his heart broke when he heard Paul was dead.
All he could think of at the time, the star tells Yahoo! Movies at CinemaCon 2014 in Las Vegas, was Paul’s teenage daughter, Meadow Rain. She is now living with her mother and grandmother, but the grandmother, Paul’s mother, has filed the papers to ask for guardianship because the mother is an alcoholic.
“The biggest pain I felt was for his family, his daughter,” Johnson, also known as the muscular giant with a heart of gold, tells the publication.
He mourned Paul’s death with their “Fast & Furious” family, which is supposed to come together again, as shooting for the seventh installment is to resume. At the time of Paul’s death, they were on a break for Thanksgiving, with the actor said to have shot about 2/3 of his scenes.
On the topic, The Rock says that going back to work will be difficult and not just because they will have to do so without their “brother.” Brian O’Conner, Walker’s character, will probably be “retired” instead of being killed off, and The Rock says that it’s vital that O’Conner gets a proper send-off.
“It's very important for everybody involved, of course. It's not easy, and it's a challenge when you have something like this — a beloved person. Paul, as you guys know, he was truly one of the good guys — a great dude, who didn't take himself seriously, loved what he did, understood the business of the business,” The Rock says.
“You got the real deal, genuine guy when you got him. So it's important for everybody to creatively honor him in the best way that we possibly can,” he adds.
Just hours ago, authorities investigating Walker’s death announced that the crash was caused by speeding and not by issues with the car, as it was previously rumored. His partner and friend Roger Rodas was also killed.
Fans of The Rock’s work in front of the camera will be seeing him next on the big screen in “Hercules: The Thracian Wars,” which is actually the second Hercules movie this year (the first one starred Kellan Lutz and was savaged by critics) and will probably be the biggest hit too.