Paul Walker

From the loss of Brandon Lee during filming of 'The Crow' to Paul Walker in 'Furious 7,' here's how filmmakers navigated the unexpected loss of stars.

At the time of his death, Hoffman was filming the final installment of [The Hunger Games](https://collider.com/tag/the-hunger-games/) series, and some pivotal content involving his character had yet to be captured. It was like a member of the family had died.” Gilliam, however, was able to save his film by casting [Johnny Depp](https://collider.com/tag/johnny-depp/), [Colin Farrell](https://collider.com/tag/colin-farrell/), and [Jude Law](https://collider.com/tag/jude-law/), who ultimately played alternate versions of Ledger's character. Through some carefully considered restructuring, dialogue originally intended for the actor to perform was instead delivered by co-star [Woody Harrelson](https://collider.com/tag/woody-harrelson/) in the form of a letter. [Fast and the Furious](https://collider.com/tag/fast-and-furious/) franchise. [Christopher Nolan](https://collider.com/tag/christopher-nolan/)'s The Dark Knight, [Heath Ledger's final film performance](https://ew.com/tv/2019/04/19/terry-gilliam-heath-ledger-death-the-imaginarium-of-doctor-parnassus-filming/) was in Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. Though Lee was nearly finished filming his scenes for the movie, there was some initial hesitance by director [Alex Proyas](https://collider.com/tag/alex-proyas/) to continue and finish the film. According to Vanity Fair, “Paul Walker’s death certainly made Fast and Furious 7 more of an ‘event.' It was a chance to honor his career as much as it was a movie, and the filmmakers really leaned into that in the way they made the film.” The filmmakers' due diligence paid off in droves, with Furious 7 taking in more than $1 billion at the worldwide box office and proving an effective, emotionally satisfying send off for a beloved actor and the character he played. The 23-year-old Oscar-nominated actor, who had given a number of memorable performances since his big screen debut in 1985's Explorers, [was nearing the end of production on Dark Blood](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/river-phoenixs-dark-blood-make-426211/). [One of the most talented and promising actors of his generation](https://collider.com/best-river-phoenix-performances-stand-by-me-indiana-jones/), River Phoenix's drug habit led to his tragic death on October 31, 1993. Perhaps the most desperate methods were using footage from Lee's funeral and placing a cardboard cutout of the actor in front of the camera. Shortly thereafter, [Something's Got to Give was reworked into the 1963 comedy](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057329/), Move Over, Darling, starring Doris Day and James Garner. [Marilyn Monroe was shooting Something's Got to Give](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/somethings-got-to-give-marilyn-monroe-some-like-it-hot-final-film-footage-dead-movie-a8844316.html), a remake of the 1940 screwball comedy, My Favorite Wife.