Behind Closed Doors (2016–…): Season 1, Episode 10 - Paul Walker - full transcript

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[ Cheers and applause ]

-He was that California golden
boy with electric blue eyes

and a dazzling smile --
Paul Walker.

From child actor
to international superstar,

he'd become a driving force
behind the blockbuster

"Fast and the Furious"
movie franchise.

-Hey, Paul!
Look out here, please!

-And his tight bond
with the cast

helped propel its success.

-I think it's kind of like
our relationship off-screen.

I mean, Vin is extreme East
Coast. I'm extreme West Coast.



We get it, and we respect it,
you know, each other,

that we come
from different worlds,

and Vin is a great guy,
and I like to think

he thinks I'm decent, at least.
-He's a great guy.

-And I think
you see it onscreen.

I don't think you can force
something like that.

-Yet there was a time
where the young star

came to a serious
career crossroad.

-He just basically says,

"Well, I don't want
to do this anymore."

-He'd refused to play
Hollywood's game.

-He's as real as it gets.

You just never thought
he was the movie star.

-He steered clear of all
those Hollywood temptations.



-The down-to-earth star
made it his mission

to forge a different path
in both his personal life...

-His daughter, Meadow,

always was paramount
in everything that he did.

-...and around the globe.

-No matter what,
it would always come back

to how he wanted
to change the world.

-But in a tragic twist of fate,

the actor best known
for his death-defying car scenes

will die in a horrific crash
on a suburban street,

his friend behind the wheel.

It will shake Hollywood...

He still emotionally
has that effect on you.

-[ Crying ] Yeah.

I thought it would lessen
with time, but it doesn't.

-...devastate his family...

-They said, "What are you
going to really miss?"

and I'll say,
"The way Paul gave me a hug."

-...and have fans
mourning his loss.

Go inside his world
with the people

who knew him best
and followed his career.

This is "Paul Walker:
Behind Closed Doors."

On November 30, 2013,

fans around the globe
get shocking news

about one of Hollywood's
most beloved action stars,

best known for his work
on the immensely popular

"The Fast and the Furious"
film series.

-Paul Walker
loved cars and speed.

The actor found a perfect role

in the popular
"Fast and Furious" films,

and so there was some irony with
the tragic news that Walker died

this weekend in a car crash
in Southern California.

-The wreck takes place along
a nondescript business park

in Santa Clarita.

-The investigators
have reported

that they were going
roughly 90 miles an hour

in a 45-mile-an-hour zone.

-Although a rumor would allege
that the pair is drag racing,

authorities say the story
simply isn't true.

Nonetheless,
the results are disastrous.

-They're racing around this
curve, and the car spins out.

-His friend, racer Roger Rodas,
is behind the wheel.

He loses control of the vehicle

and plows into a concrete
lamp post and two trees.

The Porsche instantly
bursts into flames.

-There are accounts of people
who heard it,

who ran over
and who tried to help,

but the flames were just so big,
they couldn't do anything.

-Both Rodas and his
famous passenger perish.

Paul Walker is dead
at the age of 40.

The celebrity Twittersphere
erupts at the shocking news.

-"My brother and I,
we aimed for the stars together.

We achieved more
than we ever could hope

with 'F and F' --
'Fast and Furious.'"

-Immediately after the news
broke that this happened,

this huge gathering sort of
collected at the crash site.

Fans were weeping.
They were devastated.

-This doesn't happen a lot.

It kind of reminds me of what
happened with Princess Diana

where you had people
leaving flowers.

I mean, it was
an outpouring of grief.

-His "Fast and Furious"
costar makes a surprise

appearance at the
crash-site-turned-memorial.

-Vin Diesel
went to the crash site

where all the fans
were gathered,

and he took
the police megaphone,

and he gave this really
beautiful emotional speech

in honor of Paul.

-I just wanted to say
to all of you,

if my brother
were here right now

and he saw all the love
that you are bringing here,

if he could see for himself
that all of you have showed up

to show my brother love
at this hard time,

and the family gets to see
all of you show the love

that you've shown Paul --

it's going to stay
with me forever.

I just wanted to say thank you.

Thank you for coming down here
and showing

that angel up in heaven
how much you appreciated him.

-Yeah!
-Thank you.

[ Cheers and applause ]

-Vin Diesel looked,
you know, shattered,

and in subsequent interviews,

he acknowledged that this was
a very dark time for him.

He said in one interview that
he had cried more in the year

after Paul Walker died

than he'd ever cried before
in his entire life.

-The media covers
every aspect of the story.

-Raw emotion on the face
of Tyrese Gibson.

Fans stood silent as he walked
around the crash site

with a flower in his hand.

-Tyrese Gibson, who had
become really close to Paul

over the course
of the franchise,

came in and fell to his knees.

The emotion was just too strong.

-A few days after the crash,

Paul's father speaks
to a reporter.

-Believe it or not,
talking really helps me.

Is that normal? I don't know.

To be alone and see my son's
face just tears my heart up.

♪♪

It seems like...

...I wasn't supposed to have him
very long, sometimes.

♪♪

-In the years
since his tragic death,

Paul Walker's light
still brightly shines

for fans around the world.

Welcome to "Paul Walker:
Behind Closed Doors."

I'm Natalie Morales.

He may have been
an action superstar,

but he never seemed to buy
into the celebrity lifestyle.

This unassuming actor was more
at home surfing the waves

or spending quality time
with his daughter

than he was hanging out
at Hollywood hot spots.

An entertainment-industry
veteran

who'd been acting
since childhood,

Walker starred
in more than 25 films,

and his résumé included
a full slate of TV appearances,

but he found megafame for his
portrayal of Brian O'Conner,

the heart and soul behind

one of the most successful
movie franchises of all time,

"The Fast and the Furious"
action series.

Featuring over-the-top
car stunts

that get even more outrageous
with each new installment,

Walker had a very personal goal

when it came to
making these films.

-You know, nothing feels better
than to see

the audience really get into it
and applaud at the end,

and, you know, hopefully,
that will hold through,

you know, and that's really
the most important thing to me.

-Paul Walker, the youthful,
handsome Hollywood star

best known for his death-defying
car scenes enthralls audiences

as he dodges bullets
and narrowly avoids

plummeting from a mountain cliff

in the "Fast and Furious"
action movies.

He's the epitome
of the modern action hero.

Part of his
franchise's appeal --

the intense relationship
between Walker's

and costar Vin Diesel's
characters, Brian and Dom.

-Dominic Toretto ends up
being one of his best friends,

his mentor -- you know,
more or less, his brother.

-But Walker is more
than just a movie star.

Because he grew up onscreen

transitioning from child
to teen to adult actor,

many fans feel
an especially close connection.

-He had this kind
of movie-star charisma

that can't be manufactured.

It's just kind of organic.

He had these impossible
good looks,

these piercing blue eyes,
and this sandy blond hair.

-Paul!
-Paul!

♪♪

-On camera, Walker's character,
Brian O'Conner,

is both the soul and conscience

of the "Fast and the Furious"
series,

but the movies also focus
on real relationships

between the characters,

bonds that continued when the
actors are away from the set.

-I think the world
just appreciates

that kind of brotherhood
and that kind of camaraderie

and that kind of family that
they see only in this franchise,

and when it goes off the screen,
it's really special.

-But I don't think they
understand how much pressure

their love puts us under...
-Yeah.

-...because pressure
could either bust pipes

or make diamonds,

and we've decided
to try our best

to allow for the pressure
to create diamonds.

-A big part of the appeal
of those movies

is that they're
supposed to be about family.

It's right there in the tagline,

and I think because they
emphasize that familial aspect,

people felt a deeper kind
of connection to Paul Walker

than they might have
another movie star.

They felt like he was a brother,
not just an idol.

-Just seeing him on camera,
he just kind of popped.

What was it about him?

-He had an inner light
that you couldn't deny,

and he had a true heart.

He had true empathy.

He had true sensitivity
to others.

-As seen in the charity
he started,

Reach Out Worldwide,
an organization

that's provided disaster relief

in such far-flung locations
as Haiti, Indonesia, and Nepal.

Because of these efforts,
a street in Pelluhue, Chile,

bears the late actor's name.

In a promotional video
for the organization,

Walker explains
how vital their work is

as they arrive
after an earthquake in Chile.

-Pulled into a camp,
setting up some water filters

'cause they don't have water,
and people are lining up.

-No matter the celebrity,
I think when they die young,

we develop this fascination with
their lives after their deaths,

but with someone
like Paul Walker,

who just projected
this image of goodness,

that fascination
is a little bit stronger.

-I think that people
still have the sense

that they don't really know
the full story about him,

that they don't know
who he really was,

and so there's a continued
interest in him to this day.

-Walker left the world

as one of the most recognized
faces on the planet,

but it seems the camera
loves Paul Walker

from a very early age.

In 2011, while promoting
the fragrance Cool Water,

he describes his early years

to fashion blogger Kelsey Smith
on a simple camcorder.

-Paul wasn't in show business
by his own choice, initially.

Initially, it was clearly
a family decision.

-Well, he was
a beautiful little baby.

-He's soon appearing
in TV commercials,

cast as the typical
American kid.

-Eat S'Mores Crunch.
"Like a dream come true!"

-Some people think that
it was pushed on him.

It was his mom doing the best
that she could, you know?

She had beautiful babies,
and people liked them, and...

My sister-in-law,

she put everything
into her children.

-Paul Walker's uncle,
Rhett Walker,

was just 14 years older
than his nephew.

The two spend a good deal
of Paul's childhood

exploring the beaches and oceans
of Southern California

where Paul is born in 1973,
the oldest of five children

in the Glendale section
of Los Angeles.

-I loved holding him.

I loved having him
climb up on me.

I loved watching
cartoons with him.

I just liked having him around.

-Paul's father, who shares
the same first name,

supports the family
as a sewer contractor.

-Paul Walker. I'm the third.
Paul William Walker III.

My son was
Paul William Walker IV.

-My grandfather's name was Paul.
My dad's name was Paul.

My brother's name was Paul,
and my nephew's name was Paul,

so it's not very original,
you know,

until it comes to me,
and I'm a Rhett.

So just think about that.
I'm the lucky one.

We did quite a few practical
jokes in our family.

I remember one time
when Paul was maybe

about 3 or 4 years old,

and it was right around
Halloween time,

and I'd put the mask on,
and I'd, "Rah,"

and then he's just like, "Oh,
don't scare me, Uncle Rhett.

Don't scare me!"

And I felt so awful about it,
but yet it was still so funny,

so I couldn't help myself.

I just kept doing it
whenever I got an opportunity.

Eventually, you know, he stopped
being so shell-shocked.

It didn't even affect him.

It was, like,
"Ah, it's just my uncle."

-Paul's hardened exterior
will serve him well

in the
testosterone-charged family.

-My dad was
a Pearl Harbor survivor.

His dad was a Vietnam vet.

He was a combat medic, at that,
and he'd gotten a Purple Heart,

and when you're kids

and you're idolizing your
fathers and your grandfathers,

and you're seeing
all these things,

it tends to be something
that is ingrained into you.

-Both Paul's father and
grandfather are former boxers,

while his mother's father
is a one-time auto racer,

skills Paul will later apply

in the "Fast and the Furious"
movies.

-The mechanical abilities
and stuff like that,

I have to tell you, it had to
come from that Crabtree side

that Paul was able to do
all those things.

It wasn't our side.

We were good,
but he was excellent.

-It's hard
to not look ludicrous

behind the wheel of a Porsche,
but you always believed

that Paul Walker
actually knew what he was doing,

that he could tinker
with an engine,

that he could change a tire
in a way you might not

if it was some
Shakespearean actor

that they just air-dropped into
the set of "Fast and Furious."

-Although Paul is raised

in the Latter-day Saints,
or Mormon, Church,

he eventually becomes
a nondenominational Christian,

seeing a divine hand
in the California landscape

where he hikes and surfs.

-Paul was always feeling
the presence of God

and what a miracle life is.

He said it was a gift

and that we were to enjoy it
as much as we could

and then take everything
that was good

and apply it to our lives,

and the rest of it
that was not good,

just disregard it
and get on with it.

-In addition to his faith,
Paul learns valuable lessons

from the way his father
helps run

the family
sewer-contracting business.

-We had pumped out
a gold-plating place,

and this guy climbed into
this tank to get the sludge out,

and the guy was overwhelmed
with fumes,

and my brother just did
what was natural, you know?

He saw a person in need,
and he went in there

and grabbed the guy out,
resuscitated him and everything,

and hadn't my brother have been
there, that guy would have died.

So evil prevails

when good people
just stand by and do nothing.

-All these daring
family exploits

aren't lost on the young boy

as he transitions
into meatier roles.

Before he's in his teens,

Paul is cast as a child
with developmental issues

on the television show
"Highway to Heaven."

-They're going to come
and take me to their home,

and I'm going to live with them
and...be their little boy.

-Performing in front of a camera
is kind of an artificial thing.

It takes a certain kind
of skill,

so there's an advantage
to being a child actor.

They're allowed to develop their
craft in a very natural way,

and it ends up
benefiting them later on.

-In 1986, he lands a role
on a sitcom called "Throb."

-It was a series
about a record company,

and I was a single mom,

and I moved my son, Jeremy,
played by Paul Walker,

to New York City where we were
going to make a go of it.

He was a complete professional.

He'd already worked,
so it's not as if...

This was not new
or foreign to him.

He knew what to do, and there
was never an awkward moment.

He held his own with a bunch
of crazy adult actors.

-The same year,
he appears in his first movie,

"Monster in the Closet,"
a comedy-horror flick.

As he matures,

Paul is not only cultivating
a public personality,

he operates with
the same courage

as the influential men
in his life.

-At the end of his street
was a trailer park,

and it just so happened

that one of the trailers
had caught on fire,

and Paul pulled the door open

to help this person
that was in there, a hoarder,

and, no, he wasn't able
to get the guy out,

and the guy perished
in that fire.

-It's an experience

that will impact
his charity work later on.

-It's just something
that really stuck with him.

It wasn't like he drove around

looking for disasters
or catastrophes, you know?

He never wanted any of
those things for anyone,

but if it looked like
there was a place in need,

then, yeah, Paul would jump in
and lend a hand.

-After graduating from
Village Christian School

in Sun Valley, California,

Paul decides
to re-evaluate his life

and the choices
that have been made for him.

-Mind if I come in?

-In 1993,
on the popular daytime drama

"The Young and the Restless,"
he's playing Brandon Collins,

a boyfriend of one of the major
characters, Victoria Newman,

played by Heather Tom.

Then one day at the studio,

someone spots a bumper sticker
poking fun

at newly elected President
Bill Clinton on his car.

The story, according to
Paul's Uncle Rhett...

-There was all that hoopla
about Clinton, you know,

about smoking weed
and stuff like that.

And Paul was so proud of his
little four-wheel-drive truck,

he just threw a funny sticker
on there

that says "Clinton doesn't
inhale. He sucks."

And it was no big deal.
It didn't mean anything.

-But, apparently, the
politically oriented slogan

annoys one of the show's
higher-ups.

-A producer, a director

or somebody
actually cornered him on it

and just like, "Well, what's
this, and what's that?"

-Never intending
any controversy,

the young actor is stung
by the reaction.

-And Paul was,
like, really thinking

about creating his own destiny,

and that's when
he just basically says,

"Well, I don't want
to do this anymore."

-Paul Walker decides
to quit acting,

but does he have a plan B?

Some important people
in his life

are about to step up
to guide the young star.

♪♪

-From the time
he'd been a small child

up to the time of his death
in a fiery car crash

at the age of 40,

Paul Walker had been
in demand as an actor,

but after a dust-up
over politics

on the set of a TV soap opera,
the then 20-year-old actor

decides that maybe
Hollywood isn't for him.

-All of a sudden,
there's a period in there

where he just went away.

-Paul has been
in front of the camera

practically since birth,
and his mother worries

that her son might be
missing lucrative opportunities.

-There was a huge amount
of disappointment.

His mom was paving the way
for a career,

you know, for her children,
and here he was saying,

"I don't want to do that
anymore."

♪♪

-As he contemplates
his next move,

he attends a number of junior
colleges in Southern California.

-Paul wasn't interested
in studying acting.

He actually studied
marine biology.

This is because
of his love of animals,

his love of nature, really,
his love of California.

-Captain Brett McBride
will later appear with Paul

on the National Geographic
series "Shark Men."

-If Paul hadn't become
an actor,

I'm pretty sure he would have
become a marine biologist.

I mean, it was pretty
obvious that that's
where his passion was.

It just seemed like

that was where
he always really wanted to be.

-He opts to stay at a friend's
place while he sorts things out.

-He wasn't homeless.
He was couch-surfing.

There's a certain amount
of guilt and shame you'll find

when you think that
you've let down your parents,

and all he was doing
is really just figuring out

what it was he was going to do.

-Eventually, the family
persuades Paul's favorite uncle

to talk to him
about his choices.

-I'd gotten into
white-water kayaking

and rafting
and stuff like that,

and I invited him
to go up north.

I waited for the opportunity,
and we had a conversation,

"Hey, man, you're going to do
what you're going to do.

But look at your opportunity.

Look at what you are.
You're viable."

And he's like, "Well,
I don't want to be in there,"

and I kind of, like,
kiddingly said,

"Well, just go there
and make the magic number

and then just walk away.

That's all you got to do.
You just quit. 'I'm done.'"

Within 6 to 7 months after that,
he was back into the business.

-The 1998 movie features Paul
as an innocent small-town teen

seduced by a more worldly
Reese Witherspoon.

-"Pleasantville" was a movie

where Reese Witherspoon
and Tobey Maguire

played siblings who
kind of went into their TV,

and it was this
black-and-white world,

and that's where they met
Paul Walker,

who was the star
of the television show,

and eventually,
things would come into color,

and it was this
wonderful journey.

-One of the things
about "Pleasantville"

is that you have Paul Walker
in a real A-list production.

I mean, this is a person
who started out

in Pampers commercials,
but he's acting opposite

people like Reese Witherspoon
and Tobey Maguire,

and I think when
you're able to do that

and you're not just
kind of blown off-screen,

Hollywood notices that.

They're aware that you have
some real chops here,

and you have some
leading-man potential.

-And everything was blowing up.

You know, it was
just like a snowstorm.

-Paul!

-The same year
as "Pleasantville,"

Paul showcases his comic skills,
playing a California surfer

who falls into a job
as a park ranger

in "Meet the Deedles."

-It's silly. It's fluffy.
It's really kind of ridiculous.

But there's something
about Paul and the camera.

It just eats him up.

-His celebrity is starting
to earn him some special perks,

but it's not the usual
VIP requests

such as scoring a prime table
at hot spots like Spago,

according to his uncle.

-We had pagers and stuff
back then,

and he, like, got ahold of me,
and I'm like, "Yeah, what's up?"

And he's like, "You're not
going to believe this.

I'm on my way to fly
with the Blue Angels."

-The Blue Angels
is the United States Navy's

flight demonstration squadron

with aviators
from the Navy and Marines.

-And I'm like,
"Well, good," you know?

I didn't say that.
I was, like, "Aw, you know, see?

This [bleep] is paying off,
right?"

And he's like,
"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

And after he did
the whole thing,

he showed up,
and it was, like, something...

It was one of the pictures
that he kept up on his wall,

and he drug it
everywhere he went.

It was him with the Blue Angels,
and he said,

"It was incredible, you know?

And the pilot I was with

said I was one of the best
celebrities he ever had."

♪♪

-But there's a deeper,
even more profound event

that changes the actor's life.

-His girlfriend,
Rebecca Soteros,

who he had met back
in high school,

gives birth to a baby girl.

-His daughter, Meadow,

always was paramount
in everything that he did.

-The couple does not marry.

Although he worries about

whether he can meet the
responsibilities of fatherhood,

Paul steps up financially
to provide for his little girl

as film offers
continue to come in.

-In "Varsity Blues,"
he plays the quarterback,

All-American who inevitably
suffers a career-ending injury,

and that gives the underdog
a chance to rise.

Paul Walker was never going to
get cast as the underdog.

He was so stunningly beautiful
that you couldn't believe

that somebody who looked like
a young Paul Walker

had any difficulties in life.

-In "She's All That" in 1999,

he plays another popular
high-school kid

who tries to help best friend
Freddie Prinze Jr.

get over a broken heart.

-He's still sort of
playing the best friend.

He's not yet kind of emerged
into true leading-man status.

He hasn't quite had
that breakout role yet.

-The movie will help further
his cinematic ambitions.

-"She's All That" was
a very, very popular movie

for, particularly,
teen girls who helped form

Paul Walker's fan base
at a crucial part in his career.

-We were out eating one time,

and he introduced me
as his uncle,

and people were like,
"Well, I see the resemblance.

You've got good looks
that run in your family."

And I went so far as to say,

"Yeah, he's pretty,
and I'm handsome,"

and it would just
make him so angry.

-He was the kind of guy
who women could believe

that he would send
the perfect birthday card

and maybe even write a poem
while he was at it,

and guys would believe that
he would be the perfect person

to barbecue a few burgers
and have some beers with.

He wasn't too far
at the end of any spectrum.

-He had a laid-back quality
that's very West Coast.

You don't want a movie star

who seems to enjoy the trappings
of being a movie star too much.

You want someone who's sort of
wearing it a little lightly.

-Paul is so indifferent
to the benefit of movie stardom

that he refers to the Hollywood
social scene as "garbage."

-I think, to Paul,
the California lifestyle

was much more
about being outdoors

and just being in nature.

He just kind of
wanted to go surf

and hang out with his friends
and keep it pretty low-key.

-In fact, when he appears
in "Vanity Fair's" issue

on Hollywood's
rising stars in 2000,

he stands out from his brooding
peers by smiling brightly.

-If you look at a lot
of Paul Walker's contemporaries,

they were kind of suffering
for their art.

-Paul is going,
"Geez, I never thought

I'd get on the cover of
'Vanity Fair,'" you know?

"I'm just a surfer boy."
You know, "How did this happen?"

-What did that tell you
about Paul?

-That's why
he was so delightful,

because he took this stuff
as gifts.

He didn't take it as his due.

-Director Rob Cohen
first notices Paul

when the actor auditions
for "The Skulls,"

a movie about a secretive
Ivy League fraternity.

-There was this aura
about Paul,

and I saw it the day

he walked into
Mary Vernieu's casting office

when I was casting "The Skulls."

-But Cohen is concerned
that Paul's demeanor

may not be suited for
the character he needs to play.

-My worry was that
he was too Valley,

he was too surfer-guy,

and he wasn't Yale or Harvard,
Ivy League enough.

I said to him, "I want you
to go away and come back,

whenever you're ready,

but I want to hear you read this
like a Yale man."

And he came back two days later,

and he was the part.

-What did he say he did
in that time?

-Well, he must have worked
with somebody,

and he spoke like
an educated guy

and not like the surfer guy
that is his essence.

-This was a really major moment
in Paul's life.

Think if you hook up
with the right director
or the right writer.

This can change your career, and
that really happened for Paul.

♪♪

-At the end of that movie,
I said to Paul,

"You are way more
than you think you are.

You are a real movie star, and
I want you to give into that."

And I said,
"Well, I'm working on something

that will be very right for you,

but I've just started
the script development."

So he goes, "Do I get a gun?"

I said, "Yeah, you get a gun.
You're a cop."

He says, "Do I get a fast car?"

I said, "You get
several fast cars."

And he said,
"Do I get the girl?"

I said, "You get the girl."

And he goes,
"And you're directing, right?"

And I said,
"Yeah, I'm directing."

And he said,
"All right. I'm in."

-It will turn out
to be a project

that will have a life-altering
impact on the young actor.

But how will he embrace
these changes?

♪♪

-In 2001, director Robert Cohen
casts Paul Walker

in the role
of protagonist Brian O'Conner

in "The Fast and the Furious,"

the first of eight movies that
will redefine the action genre.

-I just play, you know,
a young hungry cop

that wants to make detective,

and basically he's just
set up by the LAPD

to infiltrate
this import-car world,

just to basically weed out
through to the suspects,

and he goes into it
with one agenda,

and that is to
bring in the bad guy.

-The first film, Brian
was just an undercover cop

who is sent to take down
Dominic Toretto,

the big, bad street racer.

-Toretto, played by Vin Diesel,
also has a gang of highjackers,

leading to heart-thumping races
and spectacular crashes,

but Brian finds himself
strangely drawn to the people

he's supposed to be
investigating.

-"The Fast and the Furious"
blew things wide open for Paul

because it gave him
the opportunity

to embody someone
who is really saying,

as part and parcel
of the character,

"I'm not what you think I am.

There's more to me
than meets the eye.

There are other layers to me."

-The director
sees the same traits

in the actor's personality.

-How else was he like
his character?

-There was a part of Paul

that was a little bit
unknowable, too.

He was deep, and you never
quite knew everything

that was going on in him,

and I think that allowed him
to play an undercover cop well.

-His character is one of the
most interesting aspects

of the film, seeing that
clear transformation,

being a cop, going in there

with all the objectives
in the world to be the best cop,

and then his character proves

the love and fascination
for cars

more than any other character

because you see how he becomes,
you know, aligned to that world.

-Although Brian and Dom
start out as enemies,

Toretto exudes
a charm and warmth

that's been lacking
in the undercover's life.

-He's definitely an outsider

who's sort of
looking for a family.

He's looking for acceptance.

-From the first movie, the whole
idea was that Dom Toretto

was the father figure
of a family of misfits.

-The idea was to take
this multicultural group

and form them into a family.

-The first film,
it's less about

the kinds of over-the-top stunts

that the franchise
later became known for,

but what is evident
are the relationships.

That's where the film
kind of sizzles and pops.

-By the end of the movie,

Brian is forced to decide
whether he should adhere

to the oath he took
as a police officer

or give in to his instinct

to protect Toretto
and his family.

-Brian ultimately makes a choice

and puts Dom above his job
as a cop and lets him run free,

and it's one of my favorite
scenes in the franchise

because it cemented Brian
as a member of that family.

It took him from being a cop
to being a brother.

-Storyline aside, though,
it's the interactions

between the actors that makes
"The Fast and the Furious"

more than another action movie.

-I think it's kind of like
our relationship off-screen.

I mean, Vin is extreme East
Coast. I'm extreme West Coast.

We get it, and we respect it,
you know, each other,

that we come
from different worlds.

-You buy and understand
and appreciate the chemistry.

It's a testament to what we were
trying to do all along.

-The world fell in love with
Brian and Dom's relationship.

That kind of familial,
brotherly bond

is what launched the franchise.

-Oh, they took Vin Diesel,

who is, like, the perfect
example of East Coast,

and they took Paul Walker,

who is the perfect example
of West Coast,

and they threw them together
like oil and vinegar,

and we just had
this wonderful dressing

that just came out of it.

-I've been telling
everybody that was me.

-It's an affection
that transcends the screen.

-Vin is a great guy,
and I like to think

he thinks I'm decent at least.
-He's a great guy.

-I think you see it on-screen.

I don't think you can force
something like that.

-Paul Walker's mother
actually described Vin Diesel

as like a brother to Paul,

and Vin Diesel himself
has definitely talked

about Paul Walker
like a family member.

He nicknamed him Pablo.

They had a real closeness that
can't really be manufactured.

-What the movie does manufacture
is action,

extreme scenarios
that would likely claim

the lives of anyone else.

-There was a lot of invention

that went into creating
that experience.

Some was very sophisticated.
Some was silly, simple tricks.

But it all added up to creating
this state-of-mind confection,

which people
took out of the theater

and have always been hungering
to get back to.

-Unlike, say, a Marvel movie

where you see
sort of cities explode

and people fly off
into space and whatnot

and there's always a sense

that this was done
in front of a green screen --

There's a reality to the stunts
in the "Fast" movies.

There's a belief that
these are dangerous stunts

being done
by very accomplished drivers.

-And at no point do viewers feel
there's anyone but Paul Walker

pressing his foot down
on the gas pedal.

-Paul was really comfortable
behind a wheel of a car.

He did a ton of his own stunts.

He did them really well.

This was not a guy
that used a car

to go to the supermarket
and back.

This wasn't a guy that used
a car to take his kid to school.

This is a guy that loved cars.

-We think of two kinds
of action stars --

the ones who just sort
of deliver the corny dialogue

and then go back to the trailer

while some stunt double
does all the crazy stuff,

and then there's people
like Paul Walker,

who's willing to put himself
at risk like that.

It just goes to show how
these action-star roles

really come from within him
and his own interests.

-As the film's premiere looms,
the industry is mixed

over how
"The Fast and the Furious"

will fare at the box office.

-People thought

it was not going to
really make a lot of waves.

If you talk to any of the people

that were involved
in that initial film

and you told them

that there would be
seven odd sequels later,

they would have said
you were insane.

I mean, there was no sense
that this was going to be

one of Hollywood's
biggest franchises.

-So when did
the studio realize,

"We've got a juggernaut here"?

-Sacramento is where
the preview took...

first one took place,
and then we went out,

and we're hearing
the sounds of engines

out in the parking lot
racing and...

[ Imitates tires screeching ]

And, you know,
people peeling out,

and I went, "Yeah,
I think they liked it."

[ Laughs ]

-Everyone drove far too fast
after seeing it,

but it really just became

this kind of
intoxicating thing to watch.

-I remember the day

we were sitting on
the back lot at Universal

after having done junket day,

and I said, "You know, all our
lives are about to change."

And they went,
"What do you mean?"

I said, "If this film does what
I think it's going to do,

we're not going to be the same,
especially you two.

It's going to transform
your entire existence."

You can see that Vin
was really happy about that.

Paul was a little
apprehensive, right?

"But what do you mean?
I mean, I like my life."

I said, "Yeah.
It'll still be there.

But there's going to be
a lot more eyeballs on you,

and people are going to be
a lot more interested

in what you think."

-It's an accurate prediction.

With the release of
"The Fast and the Furious,"

Paul Walker goes from
being a movie actor

to a bona fide celebrity.

-It seemed like this sort of
arrival of a new Hollywood star,

a new Hollywood leading man.

-I remember actually
seeing him at an event,

and there was just
this electricity about the guy.

He commanded your attention,

and he was there with, you know,
some really big stars,

but your eye
went to Paul Walker.

-Did I think that
"The Fast and the Furious"

was going to be the film
that made Paul?

Yes and no.

It was a good film,

but if it wouldn't have been
"The Fast and the Furious,"

it would have been
something else.

Sometimes
he had to pinch himself.

Like, "Is this really real?
Is this really happening?
Is this really going on?"

-Regardless, now that he's
at the top of a game

he wasn't even sure
he wanted to play,

this reluctant movie star
will have to deal with

both the benefits
and the obstacles of fame.

♪♪

-After appearing in several
movies in the late '90s,

in 2001, 28-year-old Paul Walker

joins the ranks
of A-list celebrities.

The release of the action flick
"The Fast and the Furious"

turns him into one of
Hollywood's busiest leading men.

But if his friends and family
wonder if all this newfound fame

and media attention
will turn his head,

they'll find
it's quite the opposite.

♪♪

-Paul was Paul, man.

It didn't change him at all,
you know?

It just gave him
a bigger payday,

and it didn't really,
like, affect him.

He was always still
my little nephew.

-Except now he has the means

to bestow gifts
on random strangers,

according to his friend and
business associate, Ed Rueda.

-Paul was in the jewelry store,

and a young man
came in with his fiancée,

and she picked the $20,000 ring,

and this guy
was from the Marines,

and he says,
"I can't afford that ring.

You've got to pick
something else."

And when the young man ordered
the ring that was $2,000,

Paul told the owner
of the jewelry store,

"Give him the $20,000 ring,
and I'll cover it."

And he says, "Well, why?"

He says, "Well, look what
he does for our country.

Look what he does
for all of us."

-But his affinity
for the military runs deep.

According to Paul's father
in a 2013 interview...

-I'm a Vietnam veteran.
I'm very proud of it.

I'm proud of my country.

I had to talk Paul real hard out
of not joining the Marine Corps.

His career was going real well.

He wanted to go
in the Marine Corps.

I said, "Paul, doing what you're
doing, you can help our troops

more than you can
being in the Marine Corps."

He wanted to go.

He would always
go out of his way

if he saw somebody in uniform.

-But he also treats
all his fans with an openness

that's not always seen
in Tinseltown.

-He was quite approachable

when fans would
reach out to him.

He probably wouldn't have been
very good playing the villain

because he seemed
like a nice guy.

-You know,
there's stories of him.

"Can I get I picture?
Can I get a picture with you?"

And Paul says,
"Well, who's that over there?"

"Well, that's my wife and kids."

"Well, let's get them
in the picture, too.

Let's get them
in the picture, too."

And he'd pick up one of the kids
and hold them and talk to them.

-In fact, some fans
are unable to distinguish

between Paul Walker
and his "Fast and the Furious"

persona, Brian O'Conner.

-He said that people
were more likely to call him

by the character's name
than his own name.

-In 2003,
rogue cop Brian O'Conner

returns to the screen in the
action franchise's first sequel,

"2 Fast 2 Furious."

-In the first one, I let the
Dominic Toretto character go,

and I'm looking at jail time,

and as a police officer,
that's not so good.

Yeah, I choose a --
I split from Miami,

and so basically
I'm living underground,

but I'm still street racing.

Lo and behold, the authorities,
they catch up with me,

and, basically,
they hold a rap sheet

over my head of my wrongdoings
in Los Angeles, and they say,

"Look, either go do this job for
us, or you're going to jail."

-Because Vin Diesel
opts not to participate

in "2 Fast 2 Furious,"

Brian O'Conner is paired with
Tyrese Gibson's Roman Pearce.

-He's an ex-con and...
-And a childhood friend

of mine in the movie,

and, yeah, and then we go out
and whup on the bad guys.

-As with the first movie,

"2 Fast 2 Furious"
is centered around

the illegal street-racing scene.

-Action seemed
even more intense

in this film than the first.
-Yeah. I think so.

I mean, we're making a sequel,
so we had to up the bar.

And this time, you know,
all the racing sequences,

I just think they're
a lot more visual and
a lot more fun to watch.

-There's this crazy scene
at the end of the movie

that kicked off this idea
of "The Fast and the Furious"

franchises doing these
insane, unbelievable stunts.

-It just becomes
this more and more kind of,

"How can we top this?"

and less and less grounding it
in any kind of reality.

♪♪

-Some film connoisseurs
are aghast

by what they see on the screen,
and "2 Fast 2 Furious"

is nominated
for two Golden Raspberries,

or Razzies, commemorating
the worst in cinema.

-"2 Fast 2 Furious"
was not beloved by everyone.

It especially was not beloved
by critics, you know?

It was seen
as not a great movie,

but it certainly was something

you had to kind of
give into and enjoy,

and not everyone
was willing to do that.

-Still, even some fans
take issue

with "The Fast and the Furious"
sequel.

As entertaining as Paul
and Tyrese are on-screen,

the omission of Vin Diesel
is obvious.

-It didn't seem to work as well
when Vin Diesel wasn't a part of

"The Fast and Furious"
franchise.

Audiences liked Tyrese
in this film,

but there was still something
about that chemistry

between Paul Walker
and Vin Diesel

that, you know,
was noticeably absent,

and the film wasn't
as successful as a result.

♪♪

-In the meantime,
Paul continues working outside

the "Fast and Furious" confines,

appearing in movies like the
horror thriller "Joy Ride"

and the science-fiction
adventure "Timeline,"

but the one role he wants
eludes him.

-Anakin Skywalker, that was

one of the biggest roles
in Hollywood.

Everyone wanted to
meet with George Lucas.

Everybody wanted to become
this iconic character.

Paul was no different.

Unfortunately,
he didn't get the role.

-Yet, when another high-profile
part is offered to him,

Paul reportedly passes
on an opportunity

to play "Superman."

-He knew his appeal.

I'm not sure that Paul Walker

would have been a good Superman.

He had a different
kind of charisma.

-He didn't want to be
identified with that movie

for the rest of his life.

This is why we love Paul Walker.

Paul Walker was aware
of who he was.

Paul in Lycra is something
we might have loved

to have seen as an audience.

He was like,
"I don't know. Not for me."

[ Laughs ]

-But what is for him?

Leisure-time activities
with friends and family

that gets him
in the great outdoors.

-He wasn't much
for anything inside.

Paul, everything was outside,
you know?

"Let's go play Frisbee golf.
Let's go do this.

Okay. Who can do
the most pull-ups?

Who can do the most push-ups?"

He always started.
He can get his brothers going.

-Fans are surprised when,
in 2006, Universal releases

"The Fast and the Furious:
Tokyo Drift."

The third installment
of the series

focuses on underground
drift racing in Japan

and is the only version of
"The Fast and the Furious"

to make no mention of
Paul's Brian O'Conner character.

-And without Paul,

it didn't really touch
America's heart quite as much.

The good news
about this, though,

is that not being in it,
he was missed.

Sometimes you've got to
stay away from the party

for everybody to know
just how fantastic you are,

and I think Paul
not doing the third one

only actually
increased his value.

-Although the movie generates
a healthy $158 million

at the box office,

"Tokyo Drift"
is the lowest-grossing film

in the "Fast and the Furious"
franchise.

-What they ended up doing
is they brought Vin Diesel back

for a small cameo at the end

of "Fast and the Furious:
Tokyo Drift,"

and the audience just went nuts
for this scene.

So when they were able to bring
Diesel back for the fourth film,

a franchise that had
seemed to be played out

was given a new life.

-But now
there's another roadblock.

After appearing in such movies

as "Eight Below"
and "Flags of Our Fathers,"

Paul is not certain
he wants another

"Fast and the Furious" project.

It's only when his good friend
Vin Diesel intercedes

that Paul agrees to take part
in "Fast and Furious 4."

-Jordana Brewster played Mia,
Brian's love interest.

It was a relationship that they
established in the first movie,

and it wasn't until
the fourth movie

that she also came back
into the fold

and they rekindled that romance.

-The relationship with Mia

helps cement Brian's quest
to find a family,

since his girlfriend
also happens to be the sister

of Vin Diesel's
Dominic Toretto character.

-Suddenly, Brian O'Conner
was an F.B.I. agent,

and he and Mia essentially agree

to do whatever it takes
to help her brother, Dom.

-"Fast and the Furious"
seemed to be running out of gas,

and then it just
kicked into high gear

at about the fourth installment.

-To Paul Walker, it seems like
the series can go on forever,

but the actor has goals

that have little to do
with the movie trade,

and he's about to pursue them
by going back to the waters

that have inspired him
his entire life.

♪♪

-Paul! Paul!

-Even at the height
of his celebrity,

Paul Walker is drawn less
to life on the red carpet

and more to the world
under the sea.

-He was in love
with the sea like me

since he was a little kid
in the coast of California.

-During a break between

"The Fast and the Furious"
movies,

he plays a deep-sea diver
opposite Jessica Alba

in "Into the Blue."

-"Into the Blue"
with Jessica Alba

was, like, a passion for Paul.

I don't even know if he got paid
for doing that movie.

He shouldn't have because
he was doing a lot of things

that he loved to do.

-This was a California guy.
He grew up on a surfboard.

He knew his way around a beach,
so I think that movie

was not only a lot of fun
to make for him,

it was also a relatively
easy role for him to play.

-He finds another project that
will keep him ocean-bound --

2010's National Geographic show,
"Shark Men."

-It was definitely a surprise
to me to find out how interested

he was in the ocean
and marine biology.

Paul was on a couple
of our expeditions, actually.

He did the first expedition
with us in Guadalupe Island,

which is about 220 miles
south of San Diego.

That's where the big
white sharks are,

and that's where we learn
to catch the big ones,

in the deep water.

♪♪

-My role is to actually
capture the sharks,

bring them over and take care
of them for the scientists.

So he helped me in that role,

and then he also helped
the scientists in their role.

-He told me
when we first met

that, "You got the better job,"

and I said,
"What are you talk about?"

He said, "Yeah. I wanted
to be a marine biologist
since I was a kid."

-The fact that
he was a child actor

and had to miss a little bit
of his childhood,

he did mention that to us
on the trip.

-Maybe the best moment
of that day

was when we were
out there at sea --

calm, no fans, just the ocean.

So it was just so beautiful

to see him in his element --
just total bliss.

♪♪

-But even in this environment,

his celebrity
manages to intrude.

-I remember hearing
one of the people on the boat

say he was the prettiest person
they've ever seen

come across the deck,
and that was probably true.

-Everybody was so star-struck,

lining up to have
a selfie with him.

He had that effect on people,

and it took us, I think,
one hour to walk 100 yards.

Everybody was stopping him,
wanted to have a photo with him,

and he stopped with everybody.

He was talking to everybody.

-But there is one locale
where Paul can indulge

in both his love of the ocean
and his family

without worrying about
being tagged as a celebrity.

-He was constantly
going out to Hawaii

to be with his daughter, Meadow.

-The 11-year-old lives there
full-time with her mother,

Paul's one-time
girlfriend Rebecca Soteros,

who is studying to be a teacher.

-And it was a win-win
for him to do that

because he'd get out there.

He had a whole nother family.

He had surf that he could go do,
and people out in Hawaii

are just used to
seeing celebrities,

and so that's, you know,
one of the things

that he liked about Hawaii,
and his daughter being there

was, like, the thing
that he liked the most.

-Please, one smile!

-Back at his home base,

he undertakes an intense
new physical challenge,

learning Brazilian jujitsu,

studying for 10 years
under Ricardo Franjinha Miller.

-One of the first things
his new teacher notices

is Paul's
down-to-earth demeanor.

-Paul can't wait to show
his Uncle Rhett his new moves.

-I became, like, Paul's,
like, rolling dummy.

♪♪

All of sudden, now I'm getting,

you know, like, "Hey,
look at what I learned,"

and he'd roll me around
and stuff like that,

and I'd been a scrapper
my whole life.

I'm like, "Oh, this sucks.
Okay, pretty boy."

And hence, you know,
I'd be down on the ground

and, you know,
having to tap out.

-Eventually, Paul brings Miller
on set to personally coach him

through his high-energy
fight scenes.

-I think Paul Walker's
fight scenes

were always
incredibly intricate,

and if you go back
and watch them,

it's never just punching
and kicking and wrestling.

It's always a lot of,
like, jujitsu moves

and intricate chokes,

and he's doing sorts of,
like, flips and...

They were always
very impressive.

He didn't love having
a stunt guy come in.

He wanted them to be
as realistic as possible.

That's why he did a lot
of the training that he did.

-Like his "Fast and
the Furious" character,

Paul is also excited
about auto racing.

He accumulates
an extensive car collection,

including
the Nissan Skyline 34

seen in "2 Fast 2 Furious."

-I caught the bug,
so I went out and bought a car.

And I build it up.
I work on it.

I wrench on it all the time.
And I race it.

Right now it's in the shop,
but...

-He's got a nice car, too.
Like, the best car you can get.

-I was just brought up
around cars.

-Whether it was talking about
an M3 or a Nissan Skyline

or a '67 Chevelle
with an LS1 350 in it...

He was a savant about a lot
of those numbers, man,

and sometimes it was just
really hard for me to keep track

about what the hell
he was talking about, you know?

Because he just had
these numbers in his head.

-With him, it was always
the passion of cars.

It didn't matter what it was,
from the Supra, the Skyline.

-It's through a connection
to the racing world

that Paul decides
to start the charity

Reach Out Worldwide

with close friend and
pro-am racer Roger Rodas.

He shares its basic mission

as part of a promotional video
about the organization.

-You put goodwill out there,

it's amazing
what can be accomplished.

-When a catastrophic earthquake
hits Haiti in 2010,

Paul's organization mobilizes,

setting up a makeshift hospital
in a local orphanage

and distributing
medical supplies.

-It was just a matter
of some buddies

sitting around that were,
you know, financially capable,

and they saw an opportunity
to go and do something good,

and they did it,
and that was Paul.

Like, "Hey, we can go down here
and help these people.

They need help. I can afford it.

You can afford it. Let's get
these people. Let's go."

-Over the next few years,
Reach Out Worldwide

will help provide support
after natural disasters

in Chile, the Philippines,
and other places.

Paul's co-star Ludacris...

-His humanitarian efforts and
his philanthropic efforts

and, you know, his Reach Out
Worldwide organization,

no matter what,
it would always come back

to how he wanted
to change the world.

-But Paul's world is
about to change drastically

when, in 2011, his 13-year-old
daughter, Meadow,

relocates from her mother's home
in Hawaii

to live with her
celebrated father.

-It's the first time
that I think I ever saw Paul

with a certain amount
of grip of fear in his life.

He's like, "Man, this is --
You know, what do I do?

I have this crazy lifestyle,
and she wants to be with me.

At best, I probably
got maybe four years,

and then she's going to be
off to college,

and this whole time I've been
the Disneyland dad, you know,

show up for all the good times,
do all these things."

And, poof, he was gone and off
doing his celebrity thing.

-Paul had a very good community

of people with him

when he was out on set
and shooting,

and he was able to bring along
high-school friends,

get them started
in the industry.

I know that Paul looked
at things the same way

as his father did,

being self-employed
and employing other people.

"I'm not only just working
for myself.

I'm working for other families.

And if I don't get out there
and do this,

then those other people aren't
going to be working, too."

And he would have
given it all away

and just walked away from it
had he really, you know,

had a choice.

-The "Fast and the Furious"
franchise

is about to heat up even
further, pushing new limits,

but all that amped-up action

is going to take a toll
on the star.

♪♪

-In 2011, Paul Walker reunites

with his former co-stars
Vin Diesel and Tyrese Gibson

in the fifth movie in the "Fast
and the Furious" franchise.

In earlier films, his character,
ex-cop Brian O'Conner,

waivers over which side
of the law he belongs,

but in this edition,

he fully buys into becoming
a member of the outlaw family,

headed by
Diesel's Dominic Toretto.

-"Fast 5" was when
"The Fast and Furious" franchise

evolved from being
about street racing

to being about
these elaborate heists,

and suddenly Dom and Brian
and their crew

are not only good drivers,

but they're also, like, master
thieves and just brilliant.

-Viewers come away
from "Fast 5"

seeing another dimension
to Paul's character, Brian.

-Even as the stunts kind of get
more eye-popping and outrageous,

the characters actually
grow emotionally.

-"Fast 5" is when Mia reveals

that she's pregnant
with Brian's baby.

She still jumped off a couple
of roofs while pregnant.

And the baby survived.
It was great.

-It's like anybody.
They get more responsibilities.

There's more at stake
when they get behind the wheel.

-So, parenthood kind of changes
things a little bit, right?

-Yeah.
-How does it change, Paul?

-Cool things have happened,
and I feel like this

was just the
next evolution of it.

It was baby time.

-Another addition
to the "Fast 5" ensemble,

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson

as diplomatic security
service agent Luke Hobbs

dispatched to Brazil
to hunt down Brian and Dom.

-Paul, you've said that
this movie is a franchise

that just never seems to end.
-Yeah.

-Is it going to keep
going and going?

-I don't know. I think
the fans are dictating that
right now at this point.

So, you know, we're excited.

The reaction to this one
seems really strong.

It seems positive,
and that's all we want,

so we'll see what happens.

-The "Fast 5"
was another success.

At this point, it's almost like
a "Star Wars" franchise.

They can just keep making
one of these movies

every couple for years,
and we will turn up.

We can't get enough.

So the fifth one came out,

and I remember leaving it
with my ticket --

"Can't wait for the sixth."

-Starting in the summer of 2012,

the team does start production
on number six,

but this time,
the star suffers a knee injury,

tearing his ACL,

forcing production
to come to a temporary halt.

-This accident
reminded everybody

that there was great risk
in making these movies.

We'd forgot at this point that
the enormous amount of damage

that you could do to yourself

while filming something
so intense.

-He heals
and continues shooting,

but for the star,

there's also opportunities
outside the franchise.

He takes on other projects
that are a 180

from the big-budget
"Fast and Furious" series.

Paul goes the indie route.

-Paul had found "Hours,"

which was a really interesting
choice for him as an actor.

It was a much more
dramatic turn.

He's playing a father
of a newborn baby

during Hurricane Katrina

who's trying to save his child
who needs medical attention.

It was just a really
interesting choice for him.

-The quiet strength
he portrays is seen

when he speaks to his baby girl
struggling to survive.

♪♪

-You're a fighter. It's what
the doctors kept saying.

♪♪

-Then, playing against type,

he takes on the role of a
meth-addicted white supremacist

in the edgy ensemble piece
"Pawn Shop Chronicles."

A big fan of parkour,
the extreme urban sport

that includes
leaping off buildings,

Walker gets to show off
his skills in "Brick Mansions."

-Ah, this is a really bad idea.
[ Screams ]

♪♪

-And the self-described
thrill seeker

has yet another way

to experience
that adrenaline rush --

racing cars
on motor speedway tracks.

-And, so, Paul Walker was sort
of raised in this racing family.

His grandfather raced
factory cars for Ford.

He had this sort of childhood
interest in racing magazines

and was always sort of
obsessed with that.

-But street racing
in real life?

That's something he does only
on the silver screen.

-Racing, only on the track.

And if he was going to do it,
it had to be

on a professional skill,
you know?

And he was very responsible
about it.

He was very adamant about it.

-He liked to go
on the racetracks.

That was his thing, you know?

He says, "You know, if I'm
going to drive these things,

I've got to make sure I do it
where I'm supposed to do it."

He says,
"The last thing I want to do

is hurt somebody driving crazy.

The last thing I want to do."

I said, "Well, that's the
way it should be, Paul."

He said, "No."

He says, "I can get it out
of my system. I can go do this."

-And as with most racers,
Walker demonstrates

a fierce will to drive
his vehicle to the limit.

His business associate
Ed Rueda.

-Second is the first loser.
That should be enough.

The competition,
the love of the car.

The number-one thing
they're all interested in,

or the common denominator,
is the car.

That car is everything.

-And when he's not
on the racecourse,

some of his rides are as far
from high-performance vehicles

as they can be,
and for good reason.

-He had a Chevy II Nova Wagon
that was his inconspicuous car,

where he got in that thing
and went to the store,

went bowling, different things.

Nobody knew who he was
in that particular car,

and he liked that.

-And he got
a Toyota Land Cruiser,

and we all told him
it was the soccer mom's car.

Like, "Hey, look at you,
soccer mom."

-Walker, who truly values
his privacy,

has yet another ride
to help shield his identity.

-He had a Crown Vic
that he'd gotten from an auction

which was an old police car,

and the Crown Vic
ended up being,

like, actually one of the more
funner cars to go mobbing around

and doing things in
because everybody thought...

You know, it still had
the little antennas

and stuff on it that, you know,
"Uh-oh, it's a cop," you know?

And that was fun, and we had
some baseball caps up in there,

and it was pretty cognito,
you know?

-But soon it's time to get back

in the glare
of the celebrity spotlight.

In May 2013, "Fast & Furious 6"
hits the big screen.

-The greatest difficulty
with the "Fast" movies

is, how do you sort of top
the one that came before them?

Because, you know,
you have cars doing things

that you've never seen before,
so it becomes harder and harder.

-Yet the latest installment

manages to entertain
and surprise audiences.

In one scene, Walker's
character, Brian O'Conner,

and his friends
climb into their racers

and take on a tank.

-But I have to say

that was one of the
scariest times in my career,

because if something goes wrong
with the tank,

it crushes the car.

-The film debuts at number one
at the box office,

grossing close
to $800 million worldwide,

leaving little doubt
about the demand

for a seventh
"Fast and the Furious" release.

And after all this time
working together,

the affection the fictional
Toretto clan has for each other

is a reality to Paul Walker
and the actors.

They have grown to be
some of his closest friends.

-This franchise
didn't make just Paul a star.

It made many, many other people
in the cast a star.

Every movie they made,
they get closer and closer.

-But this family is about to
suffer an unimaginable tragedy,

and the world
will share their pain.

♪♪

-By 2013, 40-year-old
action superstar Paul Walker

is doing his best
to balance his busy work life

with all his other passions,

from disaster relief
and automotive-business projects

to racing and spending time
with his daughter.

As the year
is drawing to a close,

it seems that
he's in a very good place.

Sadly, no one could foreshadow

the horrific tragedy
that awaits.

2013 finds the busy actor

shooting yet another action
feature, "Brick Mansions."

Then he moves on to "Furious 7,"

the latest in the
wildly popular film series.

It's Universal Pictures'
highest-grossing franchise,

bringing in more than
$5 billion worldwide.

But all of his hard work
is really a means to an end.

-Thanksgiving weekend. 2013.

While taking a much-needed break
from filming "Furious 7,"

Paul Walker gathers
with family and friends

at his private ranch
near Santa Barbara.

-I've came to the conclusion,
and he did, too,

that Thanksgiving was, like,
probably the best holiday

that there is because
there was no stress on it.

It's just, like, sit down,
eat food, enjoy company.

-The holiday dinner is served

in a massive tree house
on Paul's property.

-He wanted the tree house
he never had growing up.

-It was about 850 square feet
and had a phenomenal view.

Paul just turned 40, and we were
always pranking on each other,

and I was always calling him

either "pretty boy"
or "Hollywood,"

but we were walking up in there,
and he goes,

"You know, I used to think,
you know, getting old was,

like, no big deal, you know?

I'm 40, no big deal."

Then he goes,
"But then I look at you,

and I think, oh, [bleep]."

[ Laughs ]

-As the day continues,

the family starts planning
the rest of the holiday season.

-We were going to go on up
and see his brother, Cody,

in Oregon and do Christmas
up there with our families.

-But before the
holiday weekend ends,

Paul returns to Los Angeles
for a series of events.

On Saturday, November 30th,

he plans to open a branch
of his friend Ed Rueda's

Hybrid Haven shops
in Santa Clarita.

-He saw the future in hybrid
and electric cars.

He was going to be
the silent partner.

-As with many Paul Walker
appearances,

the opening highlights the
star's commitment to charity.

In this case,
a toy drive is organized

for needy kids in the area.

-They had guys dumping off
100 bicycles, computers.

I mean, everybody
came out of the woodwork

to help them to make it
a good Christmas.

-As Paul circulates
through the crowd,

he mentions a project
he's planning

with his disaster
relief organization,

Reach Out Worldwide.

-The last time I saw him,
he had told me

that they were going to go
to the South Pacific.

That island
that he wanted to go,

there was no clean
drinking water,

and that really bothered him.

-After describing his thoughts
on the mission,

Paul and business associate
Roger Rodas stopped to examine

a 2005 Porsche Carrera GT
in the Hybrid Haven shop.

-Roger wanted to go for a ride,

so him and Roger
got in the Porsche, and he says,

"Hey, how are you?
I'll be right back."

And that was it.

-At about 3:00 p.m.,

the pair drive into
a winding stretch of roadway

alongside a nearby
industrial park.

-Roger was driving.
Paul was in the passenger seat.

We know the car
was driving very fast.

-The car careens into
a concrete lamp post

and two trees with deadly force.

♪♪

-It actually burst into flames.

-Roger was killed on impact,

and Paul, as sad as it is

to even think about
and how horrible as it is,

was trapped in the car
and burned to death.

That's how powerful
the inferno was.

-It was impossible to even tell
what sort of car that was.

The damage was so absolute.

-The bodies of Paul Walker
and Roger Rodas

are burned beyond recognition.

-And all of a sudden,
my phone is just blowing up

with a whole bunch of people
just trying to get through to me

to tell me, you know,
"Hey, there's been an accident.

Your nephew is dead.
Is it true?"

One of the worst things
I've ever had to do,

I really regret
ever having to do,

is to tell my brother

that his son died.

I don't recommend it to anyone.

-[ Crying ] I was on the set

of "The Boy Next Door,"

and my son, who was working
as a PA, came up to me,

and he goes, "Dad, something
terrible has happened."

And he told me, and I collapsed.

I literally -- My legs went
right out from underneath me,

and I fell on this trolley

of sandbags, you know,
that the grips use.

And I just sat there,
and I couldn't believe it.

I could not believe it.

-And it still emotionally
has that effect on you.

-Yeah.

I thought it would lessen
with time, but it doesn't.

-Before he can grieve, though,
Paul's uncle, Rhett,

must reach the actor's
teenage daughter, Meadow.

-Just get ahold of Meadow,

get her back over to
her grandmother's house,

and protect her
at all costs, you know?

Just keep everybody
away from her.

Get her where she can be safe
and with the family.

I was protecting the one thing

that was most important
in Paul's life.

-Meanwhile, Paul's
"Fast and the Furious" friends

are starting to mobilize.

-East Coast came out then.

Vin Diesel guy.
Good dude, man.

When it mattered,
there's Vin Diesel, man.

East Coast guy showing up
for the West Coast guy,

and he brought
the whole cast with him.

And they showed up
at his mom's house.

Have you ever tried to fly
on a Thanksgiving weekend?

These guys literally
just pulled together

and just said,
"Oh, we can't get a flight?

We'll take a charter plane."

And -- [Imitates engines]
And flew to Los Angeles.

And you're talking about other
people that have families, too.

They put their lives on hold,

you know, and came and
supported somebody else.

-Michelle Rodriguez,
Vin Diesel, Tyrese Gibson.

And they stayed a long time.

And they go back a long time,
these guys.

3, 4 months at a whack.

I think they got to know
a lot about each other.

-It just goes to show that
these weren't just co-stars.

They had become family, and sort
of the grief that we all felt

as fans was, you know,
felt even more powerfully

and deeply by these actors
that had worked with him.

♪♪

-The family also sees

a personal outpouring
of affection.

-I've seen people come by
that I hadn't seen in years

and just tell me little stories,
the things Paul did for people,

whether they were...

missing a limb or something
and he paid for their dinner.

♪♪

Anonymity was
really important to Paul.

He connected with
so many people, young and old.

He never had -- He never --

Paul never thought
anybody was beneath him,

that that's just not
the way it worked.

♪♪

-In the wake of the tragedy,

production of "Furious 7"
is put on hold.

-When they announced
the hiatus,

there were a lot of reports

that maybe they would
just scrap what they had.

There was still a lot of
material that needed to be shot,

some of it
really crucial scenes

that required Paul Walker's
character to be in them,

so there was a growing sense
that, well, maybe Universal

will just take the insurance
money and start over.

But after the chairman
of NBC Universal

spoke to cast and crew,

he came away from
those discussions with

this was a group of people
that wanted to finish this film,

and they wanted
to finish this film

in order to pay tribute
to Paul Walker,

and that his audience,
his fans,

needed an opportunity
to say goodbye to him.

-We all knew that it was
our job to leave a legacy

for someone we love
and someone the world loved.

-In order to meet
their expectations,

the filmmakers will have to
summon all their ingenuity

using both special effects
and some extraordinary stand-ins

to help bring the actor
back to life on screen.

♪♪

♪♪

-Following Paul Walker's
shocking death in 2013,

Universal makes the decision

to continue production
on "Furious 7."

-The film would have been
successful no matter what,

but because Paul Walker
had died,

it became kind of a rallying
point for his fans.

They weren't just coming
to enjoy this film.

They were also coming out
of respect for Paul Walker.

They were sort of searching
for catharsis.

-But with crucial scenes
yet to be shot,

filmmakers must
digitally re-create

Paul Walker's expressions
and dialogue,

using his brothers
Cody and Caleb

to fill in for him
when necessary.

-It was a really wonderful
use of technology,

and they wanted to make sure
Paul was a part of this,

and it was kind of
a beautiful thing to see

that he could still be
a part of this movie

even though he'd passed.

-His brothers were so key

in helping you
to complete the film, James.

Are they now part of this
big family, as well?

-Directing his brothers
and directing them

to work with, you know,
with everyone else here,

I think gave everyone
here closure, as well,

and I think, you know,

I think that was something
that was very important for us.

-Yeah.
-When we all clearly could see

that Paul's brothers
look exactly like him,

and we got into
how to move forward,

and they were physically
on the set with us every day,

we actually felt like
our brother was still with us.

-They were very, very hush-hush
about how they were doing this

because, you know, there
would be nothing more crass

than buying a ticket to "Fast 7"

and then spending your
entire time with a microscope

trying to figure out
which scenes were actually Paul

and which were his brothers.

-An even more pressing question

for most "Fast and the Furious"
fans

is how Paul's character,
Brian O'Conner,

will be written
out of the series.

-"Furious 7," in the end,
did not kill Brian.

They had him, you know,

start the movie
struggling with domesticity

and then end it by embracing it
and deciding

that he wanted to go off
and be a dad and be with Mia.

-I don't think there was
any better way to honor him.

It was graceful. It was classy.
It was elegant.

It was everything
that it needed to be.

-I'll never forget that
when I got the new pages

for the ending,
I didn't read them.

I wasn't involved in that part,
so I said to myself,

"I want to wait.
I want to be like everybody else

and not know
what's going to happen."

Because of friends
and screenings,

I remember I saw "Fast"
three times the opening week,

and I cried every single time,

no matter what,
when I saw the end.

-"Furious 7"
made me bawl my eyes out.

It was such a beautiful way
to handle a goodbye like this.

These are very heavy-handed
action movies,

and to watch them
execute this so delicately

and to give this character
such a great, wonderful,

meaningful goodbye,
it caught you off guard,

and it was just
such an emotional way

to say goodbye
to such a beloved character.

-The box office reception was
just tremendous to "Furious 7."

It was just so far

beyond what any film
in that franchise had done,

and it barreled past
the billion-dollar mark.

It shattered records
in places like China.

It was a huge global hit,

and there just aren't that many
that are on that level.

-In conjunction with the movie,

Wiz Khalifa releases the song
"See You Again"

as a tribute to Paul.

It receives
three Grammy nominations.

-I remember the crew
that works with me,

as a special trip,
we went to the Greek islands.

And we're sitting on top
of the most romantic,

beautiful location in Santorini,
and as the sunset is going,

the one song that comes on
was the song for Paul.

And it was a beautiful
moment for us,

but it was a sad moment,
and we all hugged each other

and, you know, realized
the love that's there.

So Paul has brought
a lot of love.

He's brought out a lot of love.

-Almost immediately,
fans see the same type

of mythic qualities
in the late film star

previously attributed
to James Dean.

-He was Dean-esque
in his appeal,

and he was cut down

at the height
of his beauty in a fast car.

-The parallels to James Dean
are very eerie

because it was a Porsche
in both instances.

-In one of several lawsuits
related to Paul's death,

his daughter files
a wrongful-death claim

against the auto manufacturer
in 2015.

The company claims the car
was used in an unsafe manner.

The parties settle the case.

-I think dealing with
Paul Walker's death

and the fact that one second,
he was here,

and one second, he wasn't
was just unimaginable,

and so a lot of the speculation
and litigation afterward

was just trying to come to terms

with the fact
that we had lost this man.

-But Paul is not lost
to celluloid.

Two of the films he shot
before his death,

"Brick Mansions" and "Hours,"
come out.

Critics note his nuanced and
emotional performance in "Hours"

as a father trying
to save his baby girl

during Hurricane Katrina.

-Do you regret,
more than anything,

that he never got to realize
his full potential?

-That's the sad part.

He was still ascending.
He hadn't plateaued.

I mean, the real heart
of the man was not shown yet.

It was hinted at, but it was
still not on full display.

-He died so young,
that he wasn't given

an opportunity
to grow on screen,

to mature into
different kinds of roles

to someone like a Paul Newman,

where you realize that there's
actually a really talented actor

underneath this
beautiful exterior.

I think that Hollywood rewards
actors who age in front of us

on screen like Clint Eastwood,
and as they get older,

often they reveal depths
that we never knew were there.

-But to those
who had the experience

of performing alongside Paul,

those depths are not only
acknowledged but celebrated.

-This is what's
going to blow your mind.

While I was
in the delivery room,

I said that I felt
like Paul was there.

-Oh, wow.

-He was in the room.
He was in the room.

There's no other person
that I was thinking about

as I was cutting
this umbilical cord.

I just thought --
I knew he was there,

and it felt like, you know,

a way to keep his memory

a part of my family
and a part of my world.

-Vin Diesel had a child
right after Paul had died,

and he named her Pauline,
and it sort of just goes to show

the off-screen bond
that these two actors had.

-And in another case
of art and life melding,

Vin's Dominic Toretto character

names his child
after Paul Walker

in the eighth
"Fast and the Furious"

installment,
"The Fate of the Furious."

-It's sort of strange,

because the "Fast & Furious"
movies work

on kind of a meta level
where Brian O'Conner,

in this fictional universe,
is alive and with his family,

but the end of the movie

has Vin Diesel
christening his child Pablo,

which is a reference
not to Brian,

but actually to Paul Walker.

It's Diesel's nickname
for Walker,

and it's definitely a moment
that resonated with fans.

Fans knew that Diesel
was sending them a signal.

-In "Furious 8,"
Brian is mentioned,

but only in the context
of Vin Diesel's character Dom

makes it very clear that
he doesn't want to bug Brian,

because Brian is living a happy
life with Mia and their kid,

and he's retired,

and so he doesn't want to
pull him into all of the drama.

-I went to the premiere

of the eighth
"Fast & Furious" film,

and it wasn't really like
any other premiere

I've ever been to.

It had, like, a revival quality.

I mean, people were
applauding and hollering

and, you know,
stomping their feet,

and Vin Diesel got up,
and he introduced the film,

and he sort of teared up.

-I was talking about the movie,

and I saw a picture of Paul,
and I was affected a little bit,

and so I did get
choked up a little bit,

and someone in
the audience yelled,

"You got family here, Vin!'

-Wow.
-Wow.

-And I thought,
"But that's so powerful,

and that's what
we bring to the table."

-In the years after his death,

Paul's jujitsu school awards him
a posthumous black belt,

while his daughter is following
in her famous father's footsteps

with a modeling career

and continues his mission of
protecting the world's oceans.

-She started a foundation,
the Paul Walker Foundation,

in her father's name,
which gives scholarships

and grants
to marine-biology students,

and so she's already
doing her part

at still a very young age
to carry on his legacy.

-At Universal Studios,

both fans and the
"Fast and the Furious" cast

line up for the
amusement-park ride

inspired by the movie series,

while fans continue to visit
the crash site, leaving mementos

and writing their favorite
Brian O'Conner lines

in messages to the actor.

-People feel this connection
with him,

and it's a kind
that can't ever be broken.

In death, he's even bigger
than he was in life,

and he was pretty big in life.

-His fame has only grown
with his passing,

and I hope his legacy continues
because he was

just such a wonderful light
in this industry.

-He was talented. He was pure.

He was fun. He was loving.

He was generous to a fault.

-Sounds like everybody
who, you know, was connected

and knew him,
they all say the same thing.

-Yeah.
-He was just that guy.

-Yeah.

He was just an angel among us
for a short time.

-And we always made it a point
that we told each other that,

"I love you.
I love you, too. Be good."

That was one of the --
always one of our things.

"Just be good." You know?

Don't be great.
Don't be fantastic.

Just be good.

-I told somebody else...

They said, "What are you
going to really miss?"

And I'll say,
"The way Paul gave me a hug."

♪♪

When he hugged me,
it was, like...

It was a special, special thing.

-Paul has left this world
with a lot of love.

Each person that knew him
got a piece of Paul in them.

-They say the eyes
are the window to the soul.

[ Crying ]
When you look at Paul,

just look at his eyes.

And that's --
That's who he was.

He couldn't hide what he was
when you looked in his face.

-Even as the years pass,
it's hard for his castmates

to get over the fact that
he's no longer on set with them.

-Jordana, you, of course,
play his wife,

and had such a close connection
to him throughout the films.

How did you process and deal

with the grief
that you were feeling?

-I don't think there's --
I'm still sort of processing it,

and I don't think it's something
any of us will ever get over.

He was the most wonderful light,

beautiful spirit ever,

and he'll be forever missed.

-[ Voice breaking ]
I love that boy so much.

I just can't talk without
cracking, you know? Sorry.

-They toast his life
with bottles of Corona,

the preferred beer
of the characters

depicted in the "Fast
and the Furious" series.

-I want to talk about Paul.
I want to celebrate his life.

I want to talk about
how amazing he was.

-No matter what conversations
we had with him,

it would always
circle back around

to how much he liked to give,
so I honestly feel

like that's the best way
he should be remembered,

and he will continue
to be remembered that way.

-Paul is a part of this culture
and our world

and what we've all did together
for all of these years,

and we want the world to know

that this is some beautiful art
that he left us with.

-I love all of you,
and I'm just grateful

that we're all here.
-Cheers.

-Cheers.
-To love and family.

-Family.
-Family.

-Family.

♪♪