Director James Wan Still Has Trouble Watching the ‘Furious 7’ Ending
Furious 7 is an emotional movie; there's no getting around that. There were few dry eyes after the screening we attended. But, if it's this emotional for people who are watching the movie, can you imagine what it must be like for the people who made the movie, and knew Paul Walker? We spoke to director James Wan who told us that it's still so hard, he has to get up and leave the theater during the film's ending.
Wan told us that he normally doesn't watch his completed movies with an audience, but has tried to make an exception for Furious 7. The only problem is that, even after working on the movie, he's having a hard time making it through the finale.
Let me put it this way: I edited the movie, I shot the movie, I worked on the music... Yet, every time I watch the film it still hits me in a big, big way. The ending has such a huge emotional impact for me and I have such a hard time watching it. I have to get up before the credits start rolling and just walk away. Just walk the emotion off. Even now, the final shot we have in the movie has such a strong impact on me.
During the time after Walker's death and before filming ramped up again, many wondered if Universal could or should even continue with the movie. Wan says he even wondered whether, emotionally, he was up for returning for the rest of the shoot.
There were moments where I wasn't sure how I could continue with this. I don't mean that in a technical way, I mean in an emotional way. I didn't know if I had it in me to pull the actors and the crew together. But it became very clear to all of us that we had to finish this movie for Paul. That was the most important thing.
Few could've faulted Wan, a newcomer to a production of this size, if he weren't up for the task. We're sure he wasn't the only one involved with the production that felt conflicted about returning. But, eventually they all came back together to finish the movie, not only for Paul, but for all the fans as well.
We'll have much more with Wan, including an update on The Conjuring 2 and whether or not he's ready to return for Fast and Furious 8, soon.
Furious 7 opens in theaters on April 3.