The Fast and the Furious (2001, hereafter FF1) – first instalment in the Fast & Furious film franchise (hereafter FF) (Table 10.1) – opens with a public service announcement by a blonde young man, who says to the camera, ‘Hi, I'm Paul Walker starring in The Fast and the Furious. All the racing stunts in our film are performed in a staged environment by professionals with years of training and experience. So, with that in mind: be smart, dive safe, and stay legal.’ Furious 7 (2015, hereafter FF7) – seventh of a planned ten FF films – closes with a music video-style tribute to Walker, who died in a car crash on 30 November 2013. Walker was in the passenger seat when driver Roger Rodas, driving in excess of 80 miles per hour, crashed his 2005 Porsche Carrera GT into a concrete light post in a suburb north of Los Angeles in an area frequented by street racers and drifting enthusiasts. Both men were killed.

Walker's death occurred while FF7 was still shooting and the extent to which his part had been committed to film was kept secret. And so, the experience of watching FF7 when it opened in April 2015 was shadowed for viewers by the mystery of when and how – or, it became apparent as the film unfolded, if – Walker's character Brian O'Conner, a central figure in the franchise, would die in the film. Indeed, Brian survives to the final scene of FF7, where he is seen playing on the beach with his wife, Mia (Jordana Brewster), and young son, Jack. Three principal characters comment on the sight. Roman (Tyrese Gibson) – introduced as Brian's childhood friend and Walker's sole co-star in 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003, hereafter FF2) – looks upon the young family and says one word: ‘Beautiful’. Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) – who dies and is buried in Fast & Furious (2009, hereafter FF4), returns a victim of amnesia in Fast & Furious 6 (2013, hereafter FF6), and regains her memory in FF7, looks at Brian, Mia and Jack but speaks only of Brian: ‘That's where he belongs.’ Dominic, or Dom, Toretto (Vin Diesel) – leader of the franchise's shifting team of drivers and thieves – continues Letty's focus on Brian: ‘Home. Where he's always belonged.’ Roman adds, ‘Things are gonna be different now.’