Actor Paul Walker tragically passed away in a car accident in 2013, leaving legions of fans devastated alongside his friends, family, and loved ones.
The Walmart twitter account has gotten into some trouble for referencing the star in a tweet some have deemed tasteless.
Paul Walker was an actor best known for his work in the ‘Fast and Furious’ movie franchise.
Walker was beloved by fans for his portrayal of Brian O’Conner in the franchise. Walker also appeared in Running Scared, Varsity Blues, and Pleasantville .
In 2013, at the age of 40, Paul Walker was involved in a fatal car crash.
Walker was the passenger in a car being driven by his friend Roger Rodas, who also died in the accident. No drugs or alcohol were found in either man’s systems.
Walker was survived by his then 15-year-old daughter Meadow.
Since his death, Meadow has honored her father’s memory by creating the Paul Walker Foundation charity that’s mission is to “Do Good.”
Walker is passionately and fondly remembered by the ‘Fast and Furious’ cast and fandom.
In particular, co-star Vin Diesel has publicly discussed his grief since Walker’s passing at length, and even named his daughter Paula after the late star.
RELATED STORIES
Walker’s beloved status and tragic death is why Walmart’s tweet referencing him was received so poorly.
The tweet in question was a reference to the show ‘Workaholics.’
They responded to a person joking about driving quickly with “Hey Paul Walker. Click it or ticket,” a line from Workaholics that aired before Walker’s death.
“Click it or ticket” refers to “clicking” in a seatbelt, or facing a ticket for not wearing one.
The joke essentially is telling the person to drive safely and to slow down, which is a reference to the Fast and Furious series Walker starred in.
However, many felt that the reference hasn’t aged well after Walker’s death in a car accident.
Fans were calling the tweet “disgusting” and “tasteless,” whether they understood it was Workaholics reference or not. Walmart promptly deleted the tweet.
“We apologize to Paul Walker’s family, friends and fans,” A Walmart spokesperson has said.
“The tweet was posted in poor judgement and has been removed,” the statement continued.
Some fans were still not pleased with the response.
However, others were more understanding.
“I get why people are mad at the Walmart Paul Walker thing, but I feel like this was more of a fast and furious reference, because he literally drove fast in the movies. Also this was a quote from some show I don’t think they meant it to come off as disrespectful,” one fan tweeted .
