By Craig Hunter on December 4, 2013

Following the tragic and sudden death of actor Paul Walker over the weekend, Universal Pictures having struggled to decide their next move for the seventh feature in their record-breaking action franchise. Cast and crew on the film had been taking a break for the Thanksgiving festivities and had been expected to return this week before the shocking news of Walker’s car accident. Well, certainly in the short-term, it appears they have reached a decision as the following short statement confirms production has been halted on the film being directed by James Wan.

The tragedy was always going to delay the film’s release, which currently slated for the 11th July 2014. They will now look at all options in going forward and whether starting from scratch is an option and/or how to honour the actor and his fans. Speaking of honouring Walker, Universal have also released the following tribute video, highlighting the 40 year-old’s career.

大公網

環球影業發聲明 將中止《速度與激情7》

北京時間12月5日消息，據國外媒體報道，環球影業已經在今天發表聲明宣布，將中止《速度與激情7》(Fast &Furious 7)。

聲明中說：「現在，我們環球的所有人無心他事。此刻，我們感到有責任中止《速度與激情7》的制作一段時間，好讓我們評估讓這個係列進行下去的各種可能。我們承諾讓廣大影迷知情，一旦有了新的進展一定第一時間通知大家。在那之前，我們知道他們一定會加入我們一起來哀悼我們親愛朋友保羅-沃克的去世。」

《速度與激情7》今年九月開始拍攝，已經完成了大部分鏡頭，但依然有少部分還沒有完成，其中包括保羅-沃克的戲份。現在基本可以肯定，《速度與激情7》原定明年7月11日上映的計劃已經泡湯。

除了中止《速度與激情7》的拍攝，環球昨天還宣布將響應保羅-沃克的家人的號召，將《速度與激情6》(Fast &Furious 6)的影碟收入拿出一定比例捐給保羅-沃克創建的慈善機構「Reach Out WorldWide」(www.roww.org)。該機構是保羅-沃克2010年海地地震後成立的，旨在幫助自然災害地區加速救災重建工作，他出事之前所參加的也正是該機構的慈善活動。

據悉《速度與激情6》迄今已在全球賺取7.88億美元票房，影片的網絡數字下載版、DVD和藍光影碟、以及VOD付費點播版將在12月10日發行。