FAST & FURIOUS 7 Production Delayed Indefinitely

Following the tragic death of Paul Walker, fans were left wondering what would happen to the "Fast & Furious" franchise, specifically, the seventh installment directed by James Wan ("Saw", "The Conjuring"), which is still filming. The studio has announced that production has been delayed indefinitely until the filmmakers can figure out how to finish the film. According to The Wrap, Wan and Universal have not made any concrete decisions as to how the story or production should continue, or whether or not they can still finish in time for the release date of July 11, 2014.

It seems that the filmmakers have about 55 days of completed production, but "Fast & Furious 7" still requires an additional 25 days of shooting. Paul Walker was going to appear in many of the scenes left to shoot when the production was supposed to resume this week in Atlanta. After that, filming was going to continue in Abu Dhabi.

It's going to be an extremely difficult task to move this film forward, particularly because this is not a fantasy film that can find some outlandish way to deal with the death of a leading actor, like Terry Gilliam did with "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" after Heath Ledger's death. The producers have two choices here, either find a new actor for the role of Brian O'Conner, or write the character's death into the film. Either one is problematic. The first because it will probably anger fans and it's really quite impossible because they would have to film the whole thing all over again. The latter is also very difficult, because obviously a rewrite requires additional scenes to prepare for that plot point. Having a character's death happen off-screen is a very unsatisfying way to remove a protagonist from the story, and thus not a convincing addition to the film. Obviously, the studio is not going to scrap the movie because they're keen on recovering their costs, but I just don't see a very good way to continue the story. If James Wan and the writing team manage to move forward and deliver a movie that works, I believe they would deserve an Oscar.

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     RELATED POSTS :

• R.I.P. Paul Walker (1973 – 2013)
• FAST & FURIOUS 7 - New Pictures and Production Videoblog
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Trailer for TRACKS Starring Mia Wasikowska

We have the first trailer for the drama "Tracks" which is based on the true story of Robyn Davidson (Mia Wasikowska) who in 1975 decided to walk 1,700 miles from Alice Springs, Central Australia to the Indian Ocean. The film also stars Adam Driver.

"Tracks" currently has no release date.

Watch the trailer after the jump.

Trailer and Poster for CYMBELINE Starring Ethan Hawke, Milla Jovovich and Ed Harris

The first trailer and poster for the modern adaptation of William Shakespeare's "Cymbeline" have been released. The film, which is a mix of Shakespeare, "Sons of Anarchy" and Baz Luhrmann's "Romeo + Juliet", stars Ethan Hawke, Milla Jovovich, Ed Harris, Penn Badgley, Dakota Johnson, Anton Yelchin, John Leguizamo and Delroy Lindo.

"Cymbeline" currently has no release date.

Check out the trailer and poster after the jump.

Weekend Box-Office Report: FROZEN, HOMEFRONT, OLDBOY

For a second consecutive weekend, "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" was first at the box-office, earning $74 million in the 3-day timeframe, which adds up to a US total of $296 million and a worldwide cume of $573 million. The sequel's US gross is still $100 million behind the first film, but the international ticket sales are a lot better, after only 10 days in theaters.

The Disney animation feature "Frozen" has expanded from its initial limited release and went straight to No.2 with an impressive $66 million and a 10-day total of $93 million. Overseas, the film hasn't performed so well, grossing only $16 million.

A much less impressive performance is that of the Jason Statham thriller "Homefront" which opened at No.5 with $6.9 million, in line with Statham's less successful films of the past years, like "Parker" and "Safe". But, since the film only cost $22 million to make, it will manage to recouperate its costs, eventually.

Spike Lee's remake of "Oldboy" opened this past weekend in a semi-wide release, but managed to tank at the box-office, grossing only  $850,000 from 583 theaters. The film had a budget of $30 million, so its progress is not encouraging.

More box-office details and the complete top 10, after the jump.

Weekly Summary, November 25 - December 1, 2013

This post contains all the news, trailers, movie clips, DVD/Blu-Ray releases and many more, that you may have missed in the last seven days, arranged in an accessible manner. Just browse and click the article titles you want to read. Read the full article to check out the weekly summary.

R.I.P. Paul Walker (1973 – 2013)

"Fast & Furious" actor Paul Walker was killed in a car accident in California on Saturday afternoon. The 40-year-old actor was a passenger in a friend's car and was attending a charity event for his organization Reach Out Worldwide. According to the police, the accident was a "single-car collision against a fixed object near the road". The shocking news was confirmed via Walker's Facebook page:

"It is with a truly heavy heart that we must confirm that Paul Walker passed away today in a tragic car accident while attending a charity event for his organization Reach Out Worldwide. He was a passenger in a friend’s car, in which both lost their lives. We appreciate your patience as we too are stunned and saddened beyond belief by this news. Thank you for keeping his family and friends in your prayers during this very difficult time. We will do our best to keep you apprised on where to send condolences."

Social media across the world reflected the sadness of this tragedy as Paul Walker's friends and colleagues wrote heartbreaking messages. "Fast & Furious" co-star Vin Diesel wrote about the tragic event on Instagram and Twitter:

"Brother I will miss you very much. I am absolutely speechless. Heaven has gained a new Angel. Rest in Peace."

"My heart is hurting so sad. Paul walker was a good man. RIP my friend... Sorry to the Walker family."

And here is a statement from Universal Pictures, the studio behind the "Fast & Furious" films:

"All of us at Universal are heartbroken. Paul was truly one of the most beloved and respected members of our studio family for 14 years, and this loss is devastating to us, to everyone involved with the FAST AND FURIOUS films, and to countless fans. We send our deepest and most sincere condolences to Paul’s family."

Although he is mostly known for his work on the "Fast & Furious" films, his body of work included roles in films like "Pleasantville", "Varsity Blues", "The Skulls", "Joy Ride", "Running Scared", "Into the Blue", "Eight Below" and "Flags of Our Fathers". He was recently filming for James Wan's "Fast & Furious 7", but it is unclear at this point if he had finished all of his scenes in that film. This year he also starred in the thriller "Hours" which will be released on December 13, 2013. He also finished filming the crime drama "Brick Mansions" which is written by Luc Besson and also stars RZA and Robert Maillet.

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2014 Independent Spirit Awards Nominations Announced

The nominations for the 2014 Independent Spirit Awards have been announced. The main contenders include Steve McQueen's drama "12 Years a Slave" which has earned seven nominations, followed by Alexander Payne's "Nebraska" with six nods and the lost-at-sea drama "All is Lost" starring Robert Redford, with four noms. The Coen Brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis" was nominated for Best Feature, Best Male Lead (Oscar Isaac) and Best Cinematography. Joseph Gordon-Levitt was nominated for Best First Screenplay for his work on "Don Jon".

Read the complete list of nominations after the jump.