EXCLUSIVE: Paul Walker’s brother Cody breaks down in TEARS as he lays bare his enduring grief over The Fast and the Furious star’s death – and lifts the lid on his relationship with estranged niece Meadow
- Cody was overcome with emotion as he remembered his late brother in an exclusive DailyMail.com interview
- The actor said it was ‘hard to believe’ he died ten years ago this November
- Cody was comforted by Paul’s Fast and the Furious co-star Tyrese Gibson who will co-host the inaugural FuelFest this Saturday
Paul Walker’s brother Cody had to be comforted by his close friend Tyrese Gibson after he was reduced to tears while opening up about his grief over the death of his sibling – just days before what would have been the late actor’s 50th birthday.
The Fast and the Furious star died in 2013, aged 40, after the car he was travelling in smashed into a concrete lamppost and blew up in flames in California.
Now, in an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com, FuelFest founder Cody laid bare his enduring heartbreak over the loss of his older brother, while opening up about the ‘big role’ Paul played in his life following their parents’ separation as kids.
‘Miss him everyday. Hard to believe actually. Ten years. Wow,’ he said as he remembered his eldest sibling.
He also voiced his ‘pride’ for Paul’s 24-year-old model daughter Meadow, who has fronted campaigns for Givenchy, although he admitted that the newlywed is ‘doing her own thing’ following reports that the pair’s relationship had become estranged.
Fighting back tears: Cody was reduced to tears while discussing his late brother Paul in an exclusive interview with Dailymail.com
Shoulder to cry on: Tyrese was there for Cody when he revealed how the Walker family will take pictures of the sunrise and sunset to mark Paul’s 50th next week
Cody (seen with Paul) was 25 when his brother passed away – and he has now opened up about the incredible impact his brother had on his life
Cody, 35, opened up to DailyMail.com while discussing his latest passion project, FuelFest, an event series kicking off on Saturday that will feature live drifting and supercar roll racing
Speaking about plans to honor Paul on the tenth anniversary of his passing on November 30 he started: ‘Coming on ten years now, usually like members of the family will, like take pictures of the sunrise or the sunset on his birthday.’
But the actor – who is preparing to host his inaugural FuelFest even in New Jersey on Saturday – trailed off as he wiped his eyes and struggled to fight back tears.
Tyrese, who starred in the Fast and Furious franchise alongside Paul, quickly jumped up to hug his friend, offering him comfort as Cody broke down.
Taking a moment to compose himself, Cody continued: ‘His 50th will be Tuesday. Miss him everyday. Hard to believe actually. Ten years. Wow.’
Speaking about their relationship, he added: ‘He has played such a big role in my life,’ Cody said of his late brother. ‘He’s 15 years older than I was. Same parents. I was the accident – the best one…
‘My parents separated when I was in middle school, so just a huge influence on my life. You know, I got to travel a lot with him, he’d take me away.
‘My mom, would say, “He’s got to come back for school,” and he would just say, “Oh, he’s learning everything he needs to learn with me.”
‘He meant a lot of a lot of things to a lot of people. And we miss him a lot.’
Cody, who was 25 years old when his brother died, said he enjoys people relaying their stories of how much Paul meant to them.
Father-daughter: Cody addressed his relationship with Paul’s daughter Meadow, pictured here with her father, following reports that they are now estranged
Buddies: Tyrese continues to help remember Paul, pictured together in 2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious, by hosting FuelFest which sees some proceeds donated to Paul’s non-profit charity
‘It’s a really cool thing when people will come up and they’ll say ‘your brother is the reason why I’m into cars’ or ‘a car saved my life’,’ he gushed.
‘It’s a cool feeling because my answer is always ‘me too’. I’m 15 years younger. He had a huge impact – I couldn’t even drive. I was in middle school. Running out to the theatres going to the premieres and all of that. It was such a blast. So it feels really good when people say stuff like that.’
Asked about his current relationship with Paul’s daughter Meadow, who starred in Fast X this year, he said: ‘She’s doing her own thing. She’s pursuing that career. She’s finding her success. Very proud of her right now.’
Tyrese joined in with praising Meadow, adding: ‘She was just in Fast Ten. So proud. We love Meadow. She is a supermodel. Paul Walker was a model without even being a model. This guy checks off everybody. He was the perfect white man.’
Meadow, who was 14 years old when her father died, is said to have become estranged from the Walker family, with reports in 2019 claiming she had ‘cut them out’.
The model, actress, and CEO of the Paul Walker Foundation, who married Louis Thornton-Allan in October 2021, previously said her father would have been ‘amazed’ at her role in Fast X.
Cody was speaking to DailyMail.com ahead of Fuel Fest, a car-focused event series that kicks off tomorrow at New Jersey Motorsports Park.
Proud: Cody voiced his pride at Meadow for pathing a successful career for herself as a model
Keeping it in the family: Meadow made her debut in Fast X, the latest installment in the Fast and Furious franchise, earlier this year
Legacy: Paul at the Fast and Furious 6 film premiere just six months before his fatal car crash
The event, organized by Cody and his business partner Chris Lee, is co-hosted by Tyrese, who starred alongside Paul in the blockbuster Fast and the Furious franchise.
A portion of the proceeds from the inaugural event will be donated to Reach Out, the non-profit organization founded by Paul to help send responders to disaster-stricken areas to aid with the relief effort.
‘Whenever a natural disaster would happen, Paul out of his own pocket, would put ten or 15 people on a plane and they would be there pulling rocks and helping the unburied people or helping in any natural disaster,’ Cody said.
‘So every FuelFest event we do, we’re donating a portion of all of the proceeds from all of the ticket sales to reach out worldwide, because we got people right now in Hawaii with boots on the ground helping out.’
Upcoming shows include Las Vegas on October 6-7 and Scottsdale on December 9.
Paul played Brian O’Conner in five Fast and Furious movies, and featured posthumously in Furious 7 in 2015.
Tickets for FuelFest New Jersey, Las Vegas, and Scottsdale are on sale now at FuelFest.com
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