Throughout the emotionally trying Fast and Furious 7 ordeal, Vin Diesel has been very diligent about keeping fans of the franchise up to date on the progress of the production via his personal Facebook. Since the death of his co-star and “brother” Paul Walker, the production of Universal’s most profitable franchise had to jump through hoops to finish Paul Walker’s remaining scenes.
With all of that in mind, fans of the series were surprised when reports leaked out about Diesel throwing tantrums and halting production. As previously reported , Diesel spent hours in his trailer wasting time on days when he was slated to film.
One source said of Diesel’s tantrums:
“Vin spent a whole day in his trailer one day. The next day, they waited four hours for him. He called a meeting [last month] of studio execs to his trailer for two-and-a-half hours to say, ‘What the f**k am I doing here?’”
Despite the reports, Universal’s chairman Donna Langley denied the claims:
“This production is working through some challenges that are historically unprecedented. The crew and cast, led by Vin, have been nothing but terrific under these circumstances.”
On the heels of this report, Diesel took to his Facebook to explain just how difficult it has been trying to wrap up Paul Walker’s character, Brian O’Conner, and continuing with the series despite a key element missing from the production.
Referencing Walker’s own creative process, Diesel addressed the rumors about his attitude on the set in his Facebook post:
“There wasn’t a scene in the saga he didn’t want to discuss, improve… even with just a changing of a line or adding a specific nuance to enrich a moment.”
Diesel continued to explain the bond that the two had:
“He always knew I would fight for him… whether it was to protect his deal or to protect his integrity… and he knew that if it made for a better film, I was going to do whatever it took… it is why together, we won best duo… twice, 12 years apart.”
After Walker’s death, Universal had to figure out what to do with the plot points that were filmed, and how to reconcile Walker’s storyline while remaining sensitive to his family and friends. This led to introducing Walker’s look-a-like brothers Cody and Caleb to stand in his place. The technology used was a special “face-replacement” technology, which meant that Walker’s face was pixelated on the stand-ins.
Diesel explained the new process, along with the reminder that Walker was no longer with the gang, was a difficult adjustment:
“With our new ambitious VFX team, the whole cast and crew has had to adjust to this awkward and uncomfortable process of pixels over people. Aside from the obvious strains it places on the director, the challenge is not to allow it to compromise what makes the character so special.”
To read Vin Diesel’s entire Facebook post, click here .
[Image via Facebook]