Vin Diesel broke down in tears as he paid tribute to his late co-star Paul Walker’s daughter Meadow at a special Cannes Film Festival screening on Wednesday.
Marking 25 years since the first film was released, the actor joined the cast of the 2001 hit for the glitzy screening, where the film received a four-minute standing ovation.
After the rousing reaction, Vin broke down in tears as he embraced Paul’s daughter Meadow before reflecting on his relationship with the actor, and referring to his late co-star by his nickname Pablo.
Paul tragically died in a car crash in 2013 aged 40, when Meadow was just 15, and she joined the cast for the anniversary screening to honour her late father.
Speaking to the audience after the screening, Vin said: ‘I pray that in your life, you can have a brother like Paul,’ before pausing to compose himself.
He continued: ‘Oh Vin why do you have to cry like this and show how human you are.
Vin Diesel broke down in tears as he paid tribute to his late co-star Paul Walker’s daughter Meadow at a special Cannes Film Festival screening on Wednesday
Paul tragically died in a car crash in 2013 aged 40, and was honoured by Vin as the cast attended a special 25th anniversary screening (pictured in the Fast and Furious franchise)
‘You know, we worked in silence, creating this. It’s so hard for me to watch it because there’s so many moments in this movie that you see that I see differently.’
‘A scene that you see, I see as the moment when Pablo told me he had a one-year-old daughter, and we’re in the car doing a scene, and that led to a franchise of moments about family in a way. It’s the cast that’s been that family.’
Vin then turned to Meadow to embrace her, before repeating something she’d told him earlier in the day.
He told the audience: ‘She said, ”I’m 27, and I’m watching this film that my father made at 27,” and I thought, ”How profound.”
‘Meadow has been such a source of strength, and I know he’d be so proud of you.’
Before the screening, Vin told the audience: ‘This is a film where brotherhood is introduced by myself and my brother Pablo.
‘And the person that was not going to let me come alone here, they represent that brotherhood, was Meadow Walker. I’m going to go and shed a tear real quick.’
Last year, Diesel sparked outrage after teasing at FuelFest that his character Dom Toretto will ‘reunite’ with Walker’s character Brian O’Conner in the LA-set Fast Forever.
Vin broke down in tears as he embraced Paul’s daughter Meadow after the film received a four-minute standing ovation
During his speech, Vin paid tribute to Paul’s daughter, who was just 15 when her father died, and said he would be ‘so proud of her’
Vin and Meadow joined Fast and Furious stars Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez and producer Neal H. Moritz for the special midnight screening
Meadow had an emotional reunion with her godfather Vin Diesel at the 79th annual Cannes Film Festival
Meadow beamed as she embraced Diesel (born Mark Sinclair), who had the logo of the 11th and final film of the franchise, Fast Forever, emblazoned on the back of his black blazer
Vin famously walked Meadow down the aisle at her wedding to aspiring actor Louis Thornton-Allan, but they divorced in 2024 after only two years of marriage
Before the screening, Diesel told the audience: ‘This is a film where brotherhood is introduced by myself and my brother Pablo’
As the credits rolled, Meadow called the ensemble cast a ‘source of strength’ and the 5ft 11in action star added that her famous father would be ‘so proud’ of her
The cast were celebrating the 25th anniversary of the iconic film franchise
Fans will recall how Furious 7 director James Wan hired Weta Digital to recreate Walker’s face with CGI, which was superimposed over the bodies of three stand-ins – 37-year-old Cody, his 48-year-old brother Caleb, and lookalike John Brotherton.
The undercover LAPD detective-turned-street racer officially ‘retired’ at the closing of the 2015 seventh installment to have a quiet life with Mia Toretto (Jordana Brewster) and their son Jack (the Kimsey twins).
Meadow went on to film a cameo as a flight attendant in Louis Leterrier’s 10th installment Fast X, which earned $714.4 million at the box office in 2023.
Fast Forever – already scheduled to hit theaters March 17, 2028 – will also bring back Jason Statham, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Jason Momoa, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, Tyrese Gibson and Ludacris.
In honor of the 25th anniversary, the Paul Walker Foundation president and Alltroo are holding a rally – ending May 22 – for fans to win $25,000 cash and a Twin Turbo Mark IV Toyota Supra inspired by Walker’s iconic car.
Meadow was only 15 when Paul tragically died, age 40, in 2013 shortly after hopping into a Porsche Carrera GT with his pal Roger Rodas, who crashed into a concrete lamp and two trees in Valencia, California.
The actress – whose mother is Rebecca Soteros – received $7.2 million in her 2014 settlement from the Rodas estate, according to TMZ.
And by 2017, Meadow and her grandfather Paul Walker Sr. settled a separate lawsuit against Porsche ‘to the satisfaction of all involved’ – according to the Los Angeles Times.
Walker’s cremated remains were buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills in a non-denominational ceremony.
