The 40 year-old actor was killed in a car crash over the Thanksgiving weekend alongside his friend Roger Rodas. Rodas was driving at the time.

Following an autopsy, the coroner’s office found that Walker died of “combined effects of traumatic and thermal injuries” while race-car driver Rodas suffered “multiple traumatic injuries” in the tragedy, which has devastated the pair’s family, fans and co-workers.

Today Universal Pictures formally halted production of Fast & Furious 7. Walker, who had appeared in the franchise since is inception, was on a break from filming when he died.

Universal said, in a statement to Deadline.com, “Right now, all of us at Universal are dedicated to providing support to Paul’s immediate family and our extended Fast & Furious family of cast, crew and filmmakers.”

“At this time we feel it is our responsibility to shut down production on Fast & Furious 7 for a period of time so we can assess all options available to move forward with the franchise.”

While it is almost certain that Fast & Furious 7 will not keep its July 2014 release date, Universal did not offer any clues as to whether the film would be re-written or even scrapped entirely.

“We are committed to keeping Fast & Furious fans informed, and we will provide further information to them when we have it,” read the statement. “Until then, we know they join us in mourning the passing of our dear friend Paul Walker.”