The actor died on 30 November 2013 in a car accident
Paul Walker’s mother heartbreakingly revealed the actor only set out in his car on the day he died in a fatal crash because of one text message.
The Fast & Furious star died 12 years ago today at the age of 40 following a fatal accident in Los Angeles.
He had been travelling home from a charity event alongside racing driver friend Roger Rodas when they were involved in the crash.
Walker had been a passenger in Rodas’ car, a Porsche Carrera, which crashed into a lamp post and two trees after Rodas lost control of the vehicle.
Both men were killed within seconds of impact.
Walker’s death sent shockwaves through the acting world, with the actor’s life later being memorialised in 2018 documentary I Am Paul Walker.
One of the most heartbreaking revelations in the documentary came from Walker’s mother Cheryl, who revealed that her son had been planning to stay at home on the day of his death.
Paul Walker’s mum Cheryl opened up about her last conversation with the actor (Dr Oz)
She recalled sitting and chatting to Walker in his kitchen, with the actor excited to see his daughter Meadow later that evening. He planned for the pair to decorate a Christmas tree together as he was on a filming break from Furious 7.
“We were having this good conversation, and he’d forgotten about an event he had. He got a text and said ‘Oh my gosh, I’m supposed to be somewhere’,” she recalled.
The event was one which had been set up by his charity Reach Out and was raising money for victims of Typhoon Haiyan in The Philippines.
Cheryl also retold the events of that day during an interview with The Dr Oz Show, explaining that she was expecting to see him back from the event in the early afternoon.
“He was in my home, he left to go to the event, and so I was expecting him back in the early afternoon, evening,” she explained. “And we had plans with his daughter, too, to decorate a Christmas tree that night.”
How Paul Walker’s death changed the ending of Furious 7
Walker’s death also impacted the outcome of Furious 7, the film he was working on at the time of his death.
Production on Furious 7 was placed on hiatus in the immediate aftermath of Walker’s passing, with the film later being completed through numerous rewrites and stand-ins for his character.
The original ending for Furious 7 was also drastically different (Universal Pictures)
However, the original ending of the film was later revealed in Barry Hertz’s book, Welcome to the Family, which was released earlier this month.
In the book Hertz explained that the final act of Furious 7 would’ve set the stage for Brian O’Conner’s further adventures instead of the emotional send off he received.
According to ScreenRant, after retrieving the ‘God’s Eye’, Vin Diesel’s Dom would destroy the device, a decision which would impact the plot of later films.
The movie then concludes with the team choosing their next ‘next destination by throwing a knife at a nearby map, letting ‘fate’ decide’.
