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29 March 2024

Video: Paul Walker, Abu Dhabi real stars in Fast & 'Furious 7'

Posters for the latest installment of 'Fast & Furious' franchise, have been revealed. (FACEBOOK)

Published
By Ajanta Paul

Universal has begun to rev up its marketing campaign for the latest installment of its 'Fast & Furious' franchise, officially titled 'Furious 7'.

Leading up to the trailer release on November 1, the makers are releasing interactive short videos giving fans a sneak peak of the action-thriller.

Posters for the latest installment have also been revealed.
 
And, in a particularly poignant move, a poster features late Paul Walker.

The actor, who plays Brian O’Conner, died in Nov 30 (2013) in the crash of a Porsche GT in Santa Clarita, California.

However, despite his life being tragically cut short, he will appear in the film.

For many, Paul Walker is the real hero in 'Furious 7'.

The Other Hero

The film's other hero is definitely the location - Abu Dhabi.

The latest chapter in the highly anticipated action-thriller series was made possible by co-operation between Abu Dhabi government and twofour54.
 
Filming took place at a number of iconic locations in Abu Dhabi, including Emirates Palace, roads leading up to the Cornice, Al Ain City and Jumeirah Etihad Towers.

Residents had spotted visual effects crew capturing helicopter shots, stunt footage and a variety of visual effects scenes shot at Abu Dhabi.

Abu Dhabi features heavily in several videos posted on their official Facebook page.

Noura Al Kaabi, Chief Executive, twofour54, said:  “This (filming of F&F7) is a great opportunity to not only generate international exposure for Abu Dhabi, but to also provide young Emiratis with work experience, which could help them to become the region’s future filmmakers.”

The capital is fast becoming a leading production hub with projects including Hollywood thriller ‘Deliver us from Evil’ and the BBC’s ‘Top Gear’.

In conjunction with TwoFour54, portions of the film are also being shot in Al Ain, Fujairah and Dubai.

Actor Ludacris, Tyrese Gibson, Caleb and Cody were also spotted in Dubai shooting few sequences.

The Changes

Shooting of the seventh installment was underway in Abu Dhabi in November 2013, but was halted after Walker’s death.
 
The death of Walker left Universal in a dilemma about what to do with the newest 'Fast' installment, which had originally been planned for release on July 11 2014.

The script was then radically rewritten. In order to finish the work started by Paul, Walker's brothers Caleb and Cody stepped into his shoes.

His brothers, who bear an uncanny resemblance to the late star, helped wrap up the shooting.

Body doubles coupled with the use of visual effects helped director James Wan and the production team to finish the film in the wake of Paul's demise.
 

Yet, there are few hurdles in the filming.

Paul Walker's close-up scenes have been completed using face-replacement technology by special effects company Weta, according to reports.
 
The special effects company used three cameras to create the computer-generated face-replacement needed for the super successful franchises sequel.

'Furious 7' is set for release in April 2015