Production On Fast And Furious 7 Shut Down After Paul Walker's Death

Universal has finally confirmed that production on Fast and Furious 7 has been halted in the wake of Paul Walker's sudden death over the weekend.

The studio said in a statement:

“Right now, all of us at Universal are dedicated to providing support to Paul’s immediate family and our extended Fast & Furious family of cast, crew and filmmakers. At this time we feel it is our responsibility to shut down production on Fast & Furious 7 for a period of time so we can assess all options available to move forward with the franchise. We are committed to keeping Fast & Furious fans informed, and we will provide further information to them when we have it. Until then, we know they join us in mourning the passing of our dear friend Paul Walker.”

Additionally, the preliminary results from Walker's autopsy were released today, and the Los Angeles County coroner said that the actor died from "combined effects of traumatic and thermal injuries" when his Porsche GT spun out of control and crashed into a pole. Walker was severely injured, but still alive after the collision, and he died only after the car caught fire. Walker's pal Roger Rodas, who was reportedly driving the car, was killed on impact, and the coroner ruled that both deaths were accidents and that the injuries occurred when the car struck a fixed object. Toxicology reports on the bodies will be completed in six to eight weeks.

According to Deadline, the movie was only halfway through shooting, so it's not clear whether they will write Walker's character out entirely or figure out a way to keep him in the plot. “They have thought of killing his character off in a heroic fashion, taking him completely out of the film and even keeping what he filmed and surrounding it with new scenes to make it all make sense," a source tells Hollywood Life.

Producer Neal Moritz told Entertainment Weekly yesterday that Walker's family will have some say in what happens to his character, and they want to give everyone some time to grieve. “We wouldn’t make any rational decisions right now,” he said. “We want to see what the family wants to do. We want to do what best honors Paul.”

What do you think should happen to Walker's character?