"Fast and Furious 8" has got an official release date and the latest buzz is that Cody Walker is in talks with the producers and that the extended role of Kurt Russell is to fill Paul Walker's absence. But Russell is still waiting for things to be sorted out.
Although Walker's character is still very much alive in the film, he's likely to retire in the sequel. And the makers' best bet is to fill this big hole by giving audience more of Russell, instead of CGI-ing Paul's younger brother Cody Walker like they did in "Fast and Furious 7".
And this theory does seem to make sense as there is already news that Cody will not replace Paul Walker, but play a new role all together. So, there is no question of CGIing here then.
Though it looks like the CIA agent character will be featured heavily in the sequel, Russell isn't still completely sure. While on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live" he explained that things weren't completely ironed out just yet. He said: "I got an idea, a sense of what Vin maybe wants to do in the future that this character could be a good part of."
"We created somebody...he's 'Mr. Nobody' we never know his name and you never know quite what world he's in and I think that's what's fun and exciting about it.
"If they do more and if it goes on, we'll try to do something to top this, which I'll tell you is going to be pretty hard to do."
Meanwhile, Billboard reported that fans think Han and Gisele can be brought back to fill this gap. "Han (Sung Kang) went to Tokyo after Gisele (Gal Gadot) died in the sixth movie. The end of 6 and the beginning of 7 show Han dying at the hands of Ian Shaw (which also happened in the middle of The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift). But characters have come back from the dead before. And since Paul Walker's death left a giant Brian O'Connor-sized hole, Han and Gisele could help fill that void," it reported.
On the other hand, Cody Walker, who is eager to be a part of the sequel, is apparently in talks with the producers. Recently, GuardianLV reported: "Cody Walker, the youngest brother of Paul Walker, is in talks with the producers of 'Fast and Furious' to star in the next film. It is not officially known whether Walker will take up his late brother's place, or if he will get a new character, but social media is strife with suggestions."
The news of the sequel is getting mixed reactions from fans — with some being happy that the franchise continues to sail, and many finding it disrespectful to create a sequel without Paul Walker, one thing is confirmed that "Fast and Furious 8" will hit theatres on 14 April 2017.
