Furious 7 hits theaters this Friday, with the ominous "One Last Ride," theme. It is, in fact, the last ride for best friends on and off screen, Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. Walker was tragically taken from us in a car accident in November 2013.
The cast and crew of Furious 7 were left with a dilemma. Do they continue production of Furious 7, and if they do, how do they make up for the loss of the franchise's star and main player in the film? Vin Diesel has spoken at several screenings and promotional events talking about how wonderfully the crew and studio held him up in support of the loss. He knew that they had to finish the film to give his brother, Pablo, the respectful legacy he deserves.
In Furious 7, they did just that. The farewell to Walker's character, Brian O'Connor was beautiful. In fact, if you've lost a friend or family member, it will be way too easy to relate to emotion you can feel from the screen as the film comes to a close. Be warned, spoilers follow for the ending of Furious 7 and the conclusion to Paul Walker's character.
When all was said and done with, Dom, Letty, Roman, and Tej sat on a beach watching Brian and his wife, Mia, play with their son in the distance. Dom and Letty agreed that this is where Brian belongs. He is a family man, a great human being, and should stop living such a dangerous life. He will always be family. Dom gets up to walk away and Letty asks, "You're not going to say goodbye?"
"It's never goodbye," Dom responds. The goosebumps are on my arms as I picture the scene as I think about how difficult it must have been for Vin, Michelle, Tyrese, and Ludacris to film this scene, despite being such a beautiful farewell to their good friend. The scene felt more like Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez and Paul Walker than it did Dominic Torretto, Leticia Ortiz, and Brian O'Connor, and that's just the way it should have been.