Paul Walker to be recreated through CGI for 'Fast & Furious 7'

Paul Walker's character will make an appearance in the next "Fast & Furious" film thanks to scenes filmed before his death and computer-generated doubles of the actor.

Several sources are reporting that at least four body doubles of Walker have also been involved in the film's ongoing production since filming resumed in late January, after several weeks of evaluations and rewrites by the studio.

Approximately half of the photography involving Walker's character, Brian O'Conner, had been shot at the time of Walker's death in Porsche Carrera GT alongside Roger Rodas, his friend and business partner, over Thanksgiving weekend in November of 2013.

Production was on a short break for the weekend, and Walker and Rodas were killed on November 30 when their Porsche Carrera GT lost control while traveling at a high rate of speed in a business park. The pair was returning from a charity event. It was later determined that Walker and Rodas were killed on impact as the Carrera GT spun and hit a tree and a light pole, and were subsequently consumed by the fire that erupted.

Universal Studios
Scenes with Walker shot for the seventh film will be used.

For several weeks the fate of the seventh "Fast & Furious" film, if not the franchise as a whole, was up in the air as the studio and director James Wan were studying ways to salvage the plot and the scenes already filmed. At the time of Walker's death approximately half of the total scenes envisioned in the original script had been filmed. In the weeks following Walker's dearth, screenwriter Chris Morgan was brought in to drastically change the plot to allow Walker's character to retire from the ventures involving his friends in the film, rather than incorporating the actor's death into the film (which was reportedly another option).

The required scenes with Walker, which are said to involve his retirement from the crew, will be completed using a combination of body doubles and CGI along with voice actors, though most of the film is likely to feature the real Walker playing Brian O'Conner.

This move by the studio is not without precedent. Fifteen years ago, veteran actor Oliver Reed, playing gladiator trainer Proximo, passed away during the production of Ridley Scott's "Gladiator," requiring a number of scenes with him to be recreated using CGI, body doubles, and unused outtake footage. The effect was seamless, though the extent of the character's appearance that had to be recreated was not lengthy. Terry Gilliam's "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" dealt with Heath Ledger's death during production in a different way, recasting his role with Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell, in addition to the scenes filmed with Ledger himself. The film's fantasy plot and genre allowed for Ledger's character to be played by several different actors.

Universal Studios
Walked died when approximately half the photography for the film had already been done.

Recreating Walker's character will likely require far more effort. About the only film where anything of this sort -- creating a CGI version of a real-life actor who also appeared in the same film in the flesh -- was attempted was for "Tron: Legacy", where a younger version of actor Jeff Bridges was created through computer animation and body doubles. Audience reactions to the very lengthy scenes involving Bridges' younger CGI double were ultimately mixed.

In recreating Walker's character for the scenes needed to complete the revised screenplay, the studio will have to walk a fine line by honoring Walker's memory and contribution to the franchise, and by limiting the use of CGI versions of his character to an amount that will sit well with the fans of the films, as well as Walker's family.

Production of the film is continuing; Michelle Rodriguez and Vin Diesel will be in Abu Dhabi in April filming scenes. The film is set to go into post-production during the summer of 2014.

"Fast & Furious 7" starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster and Lucas Black is set to premiere April 10, 2015.

By Jay Ramey