UPDATE 2: Fast & Furious 7 production officially halted

_{UPDATE 2: Universal has officially halted production on Fast 7,  releasing the following statement:}

_{Right now, all of us at Universal are dedicated to providing support to Paul’s immediate family and our extended Fast & Furious family of cast, crew and filmmakers.   At this time we feel it is our responsibility to shut down production on Fast & Furious 7 for a period of time so we can assess all options available to move forward with the franchise.  We are committed to keeping Fast & Furious fans informed, and we will provide further information to them when we have it.  Until then, we know they join us in mourning the passing of our dear friend Paul Walker.} 

_{UPDATE: Although Fast 7 is halfway completed, Universal is considering scrapping the entire production altogether rather than shoehorn Walker into the film. The Wrap has learned that since the studio is insured, cost isn’t important to them. One of the several options they’re considering is just to start completely over without O’Conner (thankfully, no CG will be attempted) but it’s still too early on in the delay for the studio to make any final decisions. Universal wants to protect the credibility of the franchise while remaining respectful toward both fans and Walker’s memory. We’ll keep an eye out as the story unfolds. Original story below]}

Since a terrible accident has taken good looking everyman, Paul Walker from us, a lot of us were concerned about the fate of his current projects. Specifically, we were all a bit worried as to what Justin Lin and the rest of the production team of Fast & Furious 7 were going to do since they are currently in the middle of shooting. Thankfully, it seems no one wants to make kneejerk reactions to anything as of yet. 

According to The Wrap, the Fast Se7en production team has been in constant communication these past few days as to what they’re going to do. As they only have finished half the film, the sudden loss of Walker completely threw them into disarray. Shooting the film has been cancelled for the immediate future until everyone has a chance to grieve and think about the unfortunate O’ Conner-less future of the franchise. It’s too soon to see if the film’s story will be altered (or whether O’Conner will be retired or recast, I’m hoping for the former), or if the film’s July 11th release date will be changed. They just need a breather. I think we all do.