Paul Walker, star of the successful Fast and the Furious series, has died at the age of 40.

The American actor’s death occurred last night when he was involved in a car crash in California. He was sitting in the passenger’s seat of his friend’s Porsche when it collided into a lamp post and caught fire. Both he and the driver were pronounced dead at the scene.

Walker was best known for his role as undercover cop Brian O’Conner in the money-making action franchise The Fast and the Furious for which he starred in five of the six films (the most recent one being released earlier this year).

His screen career began in the late 80s when he appeared in 23 episodes of the sitcom ‘Throbs‘. Aside from the ‘Furious’ films, he also starred in the likes of Pleasantville (1998), ‘Timeline‘ (2003), ‘Into the Blue‘ (2005), ‘Eight Below‘ (2006) and ‘Running Scared‘ (2006).

Various tributes have been made about Walker’s death in the past few hours.

Universal Pictures issued a statement saying:

“Paul was truly one of the most beloved and respected members of our studio family for 14 years, and this loss is devastating to us, to everyone involved with the Fast & Furious films, and to countless fans. We send our deepest and most sincere condolences to Paul’s family.”

Furious co-star Vin Diesel also wrote about his friend’s passing:

“Brother I will miss you very much. I am absolutely speechless. Heaven has gained a new Angel. Rest in Peace.”

Fast and Furious 7 began filming in September but has not been completed and has been scheduled for release in July. It is not known whether the late actor had completed his scenes.

However Walker will still be seen in a couple of new films which include Hurricane Katrina drama Hours (out on December 13th) and Brick Mansions, a remake of the French action film District B13.