Paul Walker
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For other people named Paul Walker, see Paul Walker (disambiguation).
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| Paul Walker | |
|---|---|
Walker in 2009 at the Fast & Furious premiere in London's Leicester Square
| |
| Born | Paul William Walker IV September 12, 1973 Glendale, California, U.S. |
| Died | November 30, 2013 (aged 40) Santa Clarita, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Traffic collision |
| Education | Village Christian School |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1985–2013 |
| Religion | Christianity[1] |
| Children | 1 |
| Website | |
| www.paulwalker.com | |
Contents
[hide]Early life
Walker, the son of Cheryl (née Crabtree), a fashion model, and Paul William Walker III, a sewer contractor, was born in Glendale, California.[3][4] He was of Irish, English and German descent.[5] His paternal grandfather was professional boxer "Irish Billy Walker".[6] The oldest of five siblings, Walker was raised primarily in the Sunland community of Los Angeles and attended high school in the San Fernando Valley, graduating from Sun Valley's Village Christian School in 1991.[7][8] He was raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[3] After high school, Walker attended several community colleges, majoring in marine biology.[9]Career
Walker began his small screen career as a toddler, when he starred in a television commercial for Pampers. He began modeling at the age of two and began working on television shows in 1985, with roles in shows such as Highway to Heaven, Who's the Boss?, The Young and the Restless, and Touched by an Angel. That same year, he starred in a commercial for Showbiz Pizza.[10] Walker's film career began in 1986, with the horror/comedy film Monster in the Closet. He and his sister Ashlie were contestants on a 1988 episode of the game show I'm Telling!; they finished in second place. In 1993 he played Brandon Collins on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless. He and his co-star Heather Tom, who played Victoria Newman, were nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress in a soap opera at the Youth in Film Awards. In 1998, Walker made his feature film debut in the comedy Meet the Deedles, which finally gained him fame. This subsequently led to supporting roles in the movies Pleasantville (1998), Varsity Blues (1999), She's All That (1999), and The Skulls (2000).
Walker then starred in the crime thriller Running Scared and Walt Disney Pictures' Eight Below, both released in 2006. Eight Below garnered critical-acclaim and opened in first place at the box office, grossing over US$20 million during its first weekend.[11] During the filming of Running Scared, director Wayne Kramer stated that "[Walker] is that guy on some level"[12] when comparing Walker with his character in the movie, Joey Gazelle. Kramer continued on to say that he "loved working with [Walker] because as a director he's completely supportive of my vision of what the film is. And even better, he's completely game for it."[12]
Walker starred in the independent film The Lazarus Project, which was released on DVD on October 21, 2008. He subsequently returned to The Fast and the Furious franchise, reprising his role in Fast & Furious, which was released on April 3, 2009.[13] Walker then appeared in the crime drama Takers, which began filming in early September 2008 and was released in August 2010.[14]
The Coty Prestige fragrance brand Davidoff Cool Water for Men announced in January 2011 that Walker was going to be the new face of the brand as of July 2011.[15] He reprised his role in the fifth installment of The Fast and the Furious series, Fast Five (2011), and again in Fast & Furious 6 (2013). Upcoming films in which Walker starred or appeared in due for release are Hours set for release in December 2013, and Brick Mansions, set for release in May 2014. At the time of his death, Walker had been filming Fast and Furious 7, which was slated for release in July 2014.[16] His death has forced the shooting of the film to be delayed while producers try to rework the film. He was also slated to play Agent 47 in the Hitman film adaptation.[17]
Personal life
Walker lived in Santa Barbara with his dogs.[3][18] He and Rebecca McBrain, a one-time girlfriend,[19] had a daughter[20] who lived with her mother in Hawaii for 13 years and then moved to California to live with Walker in 2011.[21] He held a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Ricardo "Franjinha" Miller at Paragon Jiu-Jitsu.[22]Walker's first passion was marine biology; he joined the Board of Directors of The Billfish Foundation in 2006.[23] He fulfilled a lifelong dream by starring in a National Geographic Channel series Expedition Great White (later retitled Shark Men), which premiered in June 2010.[24][25] He spent 11 days as part of the crew, catching and tagging 7 great white sharks off the coast of Mexico. The expedition, led by Chris Fischer, founder and CEO of Fischer Productions, along with Captain Brett McBride and Dr. Michael Domeier of the Marine Conservation Science Institute took measurements, gathered DNA samples, and fastened real-time satellite tags to the great white sharks. This allowed Dr. Domeier to study migratory patterns especially those associated with mating and birthing over a 5-year period of time.[26]
In March 2010, Walker went to Constitución, Chile to offer his help and support to the people injured in the 8.8 magnitude earthquake that struck on February 27. He flew with his humanitarian aid team, REACH OUT Worldwide, to Haiti to lend a helping hand to the 2010 Haiti earthquake victims.[27]
Death
On November 30, 2013, at approximately 3:30 p.m. PST, Walker and Roger Rodas,[30] age 38, left an event for Walker's charity Reach Out Worldwide for victims of Typhoon Haiyan.[31][32] Shortly after leaving in Rodas' red 2005 Porsche Carrera GT, the driver lost control. The car crashed into a light pole and tree in Valencia, Santa Clarita, California, and the vehicle burst into flames.[31][33][34][35] The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department declared the two dead at the scene.[33][36] Rodas was believed to be driving the car.[37] The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office stated that speed was a factor in the crash.[31] Police initially investigated if drag racing played a role, but were unable to find evidence of a second car's involvement.[38]Rodas and Walker became friends after meeting at a race track. Rodas became Walker's financial advisor in 2007 and helped to establish Reach Out Worldwide.[39] Rodas was the CEO of Always Evolving, a Valencia high-end vehicle performance shop owned by Walker.[40]
Numerous friends have posted tributes to Walker on social media.[41]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Monster in the Closet | 'Professor' Bennett | |
| 1987 | Programmed to Kill | Jason | |
| 1994 | Tammy and the T-Rex | Michael | |
| 1998 | Meet the Deedles | Phil Deedle | |
| 1998 | Pleasantville | Skip Martin | |
| 1999 | Varsity Blues | Lance Harbor | |
| 1999 | She's All That | Dean Sampson | |
| 1999 | Brokedown Palace | Jason | Uncredited |
| 2000 | The Skulls | Caleb Mandrake | |
| 2001 | The Fast and the Furious | Brian O'Conner | |
| 2001 | Joy Ride | Lewis Thomas | |
| 2002 | Life Makes Sense If You're Famous | Mikey | |
| 2003 | Turbo-Charged Prelude | Brian O'Conner | 6 minute short film introductory film for 2 Fast 2 Furious |
| 2003 | 2 Fast 2 Furious | Brian O'Conner | |
| 2003 | Timeline | Chris Johnston | |
| 2004 | Noel | Mike Riley | |
| 2005 | Into the Blue | Jared Cole | |
| 2006 | Eight Below | Jerry Shepard | |
| 2006 | Running Scared | Joey Gazelle | |
| 2006 | Flags of Our Fathers | Hank Hansen | |
| 2007 | Stories USA | Mikey | |
| 2007 | The Death and Life of Bobby Z | Tim Kearney | |
| 2008 | The Lazarus Project | Ben Garvey | |
| 2009 | Fast & Furious | Brian O'Conner | |
| 2010 | Takers | John Rahway | |
| 2011 | Fast Five | Brian O'Conner | |
| 2013 | Vehicle 19 | Michael Woods | |
| 2013 | Fast & Furious 6 | Brian O'Conner | |
| 2013 | Pawn Shop Chronicles | Raw Dog | |
| 2013 | Hours | Nolan | To be released posthumously |
| 2014 | Brick Mansions | Damien | Post-production, to be released posthumously |
| 2014 | Fast & Furious 7 | Brian O'Conner | Filming, had not finished all scenes at time of death |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Highway to Heaven | Eric Travers | 1 episode |
| 1986 | Highway to Heaven | Todd Bryant | 2 episodes |
| 1986–1987 | Throb | Jeremy Beatty | 23 episodes |
| 1988 | I'm Telling! | Contestant | 1 episode |
| 1990 | Charles in Charge | Russell Davis | 1 episode |
| 1991 | Who's the Boss? | Michael Haynes | 1 episode |
| 1992–1993 | The Young and the Restless | Brandon Collins | |
| 1994 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Dill | 1 episode |
| 1994 | The Boys Are Back | Jesse Hansen | Pilot episode |
| 1996 | Touched by an Angel | Jonathan | 1 episode |
| 2013 | Shark Week | Himself | 1 episode |
Music videos
| Year | Artist | Song |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | The Mighty Mighty Bosstones | "Wrong Thing Right Then" |
| 2003 | Ludacris | "Act a Fool" |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Film/TV show | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | The Youth in Film Awards | Outstanding Lead Actor | Nominated | |
| 2000 | Young Hollywood Award | Exciting New Face – Male | Nominated | |
| 2001 | Hollywood Breakthrough Award | Breakthrough Male Performance Received at the Hollywood Film Festival | Won | |
| Young Hollywood Award | New Stylemaker – Male | Won | ||
| 2002 | MTV Movie Award | Best On-Screen Team Shared with Vin Diesel | The Fast and the Furious | Won |
| Breakthrough Male Performance | Nominated | |||
| 2003 | Teen Choice Award | Choice Movie Chemistry For Paul Walker and his car | 2 Fast 2 Furious | Won |
| 2009 | Teen Choice Award | Choice Movie Actor: Action Adventure | Fast & Furious | Nominated |
| 2011 | Teen Choice Award | Choice Movie Actor: Action Adventure | Fast Five | Nominated |
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