In what may be the sweetest tribute to Paul Walker ever, Vin Diesel says that he named his daughter Pauline in honor of his late co-star. Diesel announced the birth of his little girl on March 16, but kept the name private until now. He ultimately chose to reveal the name on NBC's Today show, telling journalist Natalie Morales on Monday, "I'm telling you this because I love you. I know that you are a good soul, and I know that this is in good hands."
It's an incredibly special thing for a child to be named in honor of someone close to you, and it's further evidence of just how much Paul Walker meant to Vin Diesel. The actor has struggled with the death of his friend over the past year, even breaking down in tears at the premiere of Furious 7 , his last film with Walker. “When the tragedy happened, I lost my best friend. I lost my brother," he said during the screening.
On the Today show, Diesel revealed that he felt like Walker was with him during the birth of his daughter, which is what helped him decide on the name. "There's no other person that I'm thinking about as I'm cutting this umbilical cord," he said. "I knew he was there and I felt like, you know, a way to keep his memory a part of my memory, a part of my world."
I know Walker, who had a beloved daughter of his own, would be so happy to be honored in such a deep way. It's really the most fitting way to honor a life lost—with a new, young life just waiting to be lived.
