Meadow Walker delved into her attempts to keep her father Paul Walker’s memory close to her heart at the WSJ. Magazine’s Innovator Awards on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old model spoke to Page Six about she likes to regularly watch the Fast & Furious star’s films, in part because they remind her of what his ‘voice’ sounded like.
‘They always say the first thing you forget about someone is their voice, so I’m fortunate enough to have his voice in many movies,’ she explained.
‘I like to watch [his movies] at night. For me, it brings me joy to talk about him and keep his spirit alive,’ she continued.
Meadow was only 15 years old when her father Paul was killed at age 40 in a fiery car crash in 2013.
The actor was a passenger while his friend Roger Rodas drove as fast as 90 mph in a 45 mph zone in Santa Clarita, California. Rodas lost control of the 2005 Porsche Carrera GT after leaving an event put on by Paul’s charity.
The car crashed into a lamp post and trees just beyond it, kill Rodas from the trauma of impact, while Walker died from a mix of trauma and burns after the sports car swiftly ignited, according to an autopsy.
Meadow admitted to the publication that she was initially shocked at the ‘outpouring of love’ from fans for her late father.
‘Honestly, I just saw him as my dad, and I think he kept me very behind the scenes of everything, so I didn’t realize how big his fan base was,’ she said.
Paul’s final film role was in Furious 7. He had completed much of his role prior to his death, and his brothers Caleb and Cody Walker both served as stand-ins for the remaining material.
A digitally augmented ending was devised to give him a moving send-off with his longtime costar Vin Diesel.
‘To see the continuation — even now, the outpouring of love is honestly kind of amazing but also weird,’ Meadow added.
‘It’s like, “That’s my dad,” but at the same time, it’s amazing. He’s an amazing person, he’s my best friend, [and] it’s lovely to see how many people love him,’ she continued.