1910s
Across the Border (1914). On 1 July 1914, while filming on location in Cañon City, Colorado, cast member Grace McHugh was filming a scene where her character was crossing the Arkansas River in a boat. When the boat capsized, camera operator Owen Carter immediately jumped into the river to save her. He dragged her onto a sandbar that was reported to be quicksand. The rest of the film crew watched helplessly as they were sucked into the sandbar and drowned. Carter received a posthumous Carnegie Hero Award for his rescue efforts.The Birth of a Nation (1915). Future film director Erich von Stroheim fell off a roof and broke two ribs in one scene as an extra.The Girl of the Golden West (1915). Actor House Peters Sr. suffered serious burns to his face and hands when a prop pistol exploded upon being fired.The Captive (1915). During filming of a scene where soldiers were required to break down a locked door, the extras fired at the door using live ammunition to give the scene more realism. Director Cecil B. DeMille then ordered the extras to reload with blanks in order to film the next shot in which the door is broken down. One of the extras inadvertently left a live round in his rifle which discharged, shooting another extra, Charles Chandler, in the head, killing him instantly.The Woman God Forgot (1917). In one scene, extras were required to be thrown over the side of an Aztec pyramid. The 'pyramid' was built of wood and covered in paper on which sand had been glued to create the appearance of stone. The extras were 'sand-papered' as they slid down the side of the structure. Having expected such injuries, a crew member was waiting at the bottom with a bucket of iodine.The Valley of the Giants (1919). Silent-era star Wallace Reid was badly injured in a train crash during filming in Oregon. His injuries caused him severe pain and the studio supplied him with increasing quantities of morphine so he could keep working. Addicted to morphine and also suffering from alcoholism, Reid died in 1923 at the age of 31.Unidentified Henry Lehrman comedy (1919). Comedian Billie Ritchie, while working on a short comedy film, was kicked in the stomach by an ostrich and sustained internal injuries, which eventually caused his death.1920s
Haunted Spooks (1920). On the set of a publicity shoot that took place while filming, actor and comedian Harold Lloyd picked up what he thought was a prop bomb with the fuse lit but realized too late the bomb was real. It detonated, blowing off the thumb and first finger of his right hand and also temporarily blinding him. For the rest of his career, Lloyd concealed his missing fingers with a prosthetic glove.The Skywayman (1920). Pilots Milton Elliott and Ormer Locklear were killed on 2 August 1920, during filming. Their plane crashed at the DeMille Airfield, along Wilshire Blvd. in Los Angeles, while filming night scenes.Manslaughter (1922). Stunt man Leo Noomis was required to crash a police motorcycle into the side of a car at 45 miles per hour (72 km/h). Noomis suffered six broken ribs and a fractured pelvis while performing the stunt.The Eleventh Hour (1923). Stunt pilot Dick Kerwood suffered a severe concussion during filming. He was to parachute from a Standard-J biplane which was loaded with explosives set to go off after he bailed out of the aircraft. However the timer was faulty, causing the explosives to detonate when Kerwood was still on board. He was thrown clear and, although dazed, managed to open his parachute in time.Souls for Sale (1923). Actress Barbara La Marr injured her ankle during filming and doctors prescribed not only morphine but also cocaine to control the pain and enable her to continue filming. Working on the production left La Marr addicted to drugs, a factor that contributed to her premature death three years later.Sherlock Jr. (1924). While hanging from a water tower, Buster Keaton pulled a rope that released water from the tower, knocking him to the ground. In the scene, he stood and ran into the distance. During a routine physical examination 11 years later, an X-ray revealed that Keaton's neck had been fractured.The Warrens of Virginia (1924). On 29 November 1923, while working on location in San Antonio, Texas, Martha Mansfield was severely burned when a match, tossed by a cast member, ignited her Civil War costume of hoopskirts and flimsy ruffles. Mansfield was playing the role of Agatha Warren and had just finished her scenes and retired to a car when her clothing burst into flames. Her neck and face were saved when leading man Wilfred Lytell threw his heavy overcoat over her. The hands of the chauffeur of Mansfield's car were badly burned while he tried to remove the actress's burning clothing. The fire was put out, but she sustained substantial burns to her body and died the following day.Ben-Hur (1925). An early filming attempt of the chariot race was done on location at the Circus Maximus in Rome. It brought about the death of one stuntman when a wheel of his chariot broke.The General (1926). During filming of the epic comedy in Oregon, there were a number of incidents. Several National Guardsmen, employed as extras for the Civil War battle scenes, were injured by mishaps caused by misfired muskets or explosions. Director and star Buster Keaton was knocked unconscious when he stood too close to a cannon firing. Assistant director Harry Barnes was accidentally hit in the face by a blank charge. Train brakeman Fred Lowry sued the production for US$2,900 after his foot was crushed when it was run over by a locomotive wheel during filming of one of the railway scenes.Wings (1927). During filming of the World War I aerial combat scenes, stunt pilot Dick Grace was required to deliberately crash-land a Fokker D-VII, specially modified to "crumple" on impact. When the Fokker struck the ground, the landing gear failed to crumple, making the impact a heavier one than planned. This caused Grace's safety straps to break, sending his head through the instrument panel, leaving him with four crushed vertebrae and a broken neck. Amazingly, Grace spent only six weeks in the hospital and was again performing stunt work within a year.Noah's Ark (1928). Three people died, one man lost a leg and a number were injured in a scene where several hundred extras were caught in the "Great Flood." The deaths were instrumental in the introduction of film safety regulations the following year.The Aviator (1929). During aerial scouting for locations, an aircraft crashed, killing cameraman Alvin Knechtel and actor and stunt pilot William Hauber.The Godless Girl (1929). The filming of one scene required cast members Lina Basquette and George Duryea to be trapped in a burning building and both actors had their clothing, hair and exposed skin covered with an asbestos coating. During filming, Duryea, concerned that the pyrotechnic flames were getting too hot and too close, retreated from the set but Basquette, eager to impress director Cecil B. DeMille, insisted on remaining until the scene was completed despite the intense heat. The actress suffered serious burns and blistering to her forearms and her eyebrows and lashes were singed.Unknown film (1929). Strongheart, a German Shepherd film star, was accidentally burned after coming into contact with a hot studio light. The burn became tumorous, leading to his death later that year.1930s
Hell's Angels (1930). Three pilots were killed during the filming. The sole Sikorsky S-29-A, owned by Roscoe Turner, which portrayed a German Gotha bomber, crashed during filming on 22 March 1929 when stunt pilot Al Wilson put it in a spin for its final scene and was unable to recover. He was ready to bail out and called back to his mechanic Phil Jones (who was in the rear of the plane dumping lampblack to simulate smoke) to jump, but Jones did not hear him and went down with the plane. Only one brief shot of the spinning Sikorsky was used in the film. Two other stunt pilots, Al Johnson and Clement Phillips, were killed in separate accidents. Producer-director Howard Hughes was badly injured when he personally piloted a low-altitude aerial maneuver after the professional stunt men informed him it could not be done safely or successfully. They were proven right when Hughes crashed and suffered severe head injuries. Hughes underwent plastic surgery to undo the damage to his face, but his left cheekbone could not be repaired.Such Men Are Dangerous (1930). During aerial filming off the coast of Southern California near Santa Monica on 2 January 1930, two Stinson Detroiter aircraft, employed as camera-planes, collided over the ocean. All ten men on board the two planes were killed, including director Kenneth Hawks (brother of Howard Hawks), assistant-director Max Gold, cinematographer Conrad Wells, director of photography George Eastman, cameramen Otto Jordan and Ben Frankel, two property men and both pilots. Only five bodies were recovered. As it was one of the final scenes to be filmed, the movie was still completed on schedule. Families of the men who were lost took legal action against Fox Film Company but the courts ruled in favour of the latter.The Viking (1931). After completion of filming in Canada, producer, co-director and real-life adventurer Varick Frissell decided that more footage of the Labrador ice floes was required. He and a small film crew joined the real ship The Viking on a seal-hunting voyage in order to obtain the footage he wanted. On 15 March, the ship became trapped in ice near Horse Isles and dynamite stored on board (intended for breaking up ice floes) accidentally detonated, destroying the vessel and killing 27 men, including Frissell and cameraman Alexander Penrod.The Little Minister (1934). John Beal nearly lost his sight when an extra accidentally stabbed him in his eye during the filming of the mob scene.[citation needed]Four Frightened People (1934). During filming in Hawaii, actress Claudette Colbert was required to stand up to her neck in a real swamp. This scene was shot on her first day on set after having undergone an emergency appendectomy and Colbert and the director disregarded concerns raised by the on-set nurse. Filming in the unsanitary conditions while not yet fully recovered led to Colbert being hospitalized with a severe fever two days later.The Lost Patrol (1934). During filming in high temperatures in Buttercup Valley near Yuma, Arizona, Director John Ford insisted his cast and crew only work in the early mornings and late afternoons to avoid the most intense heat of each day. Under pressure from RKO to speed up filming, Producer Cliff Reid insisted that the midday break be shortened. Ford refused, believing that many of the crew would be at risk of heatstroke in the 120-degree F conditions. Reid tried to prove his point by walking around in the open in the midday heat and soon collapsed with heat exhaustion, requiring hospital treatment.The Crusades (1935). While filming a battle scene in which horses fall into a moat, four stunt riders sustained serious injuries which required hospitalization. All four of their horses were injured so severely they had to be euthanized. It was recommended that the injured stunt-men receive extra pay but director Cecil B. DeMille refused, saying that the riders had "bungled a simple scene".The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936). During the filming of the charge sequence, a stuntman was killed when he fell off his horse and landed on a broken sword that was lying on the field, unfortunately wedged in such a position that its blade was sticking straight up. Also, due to the use of trip wires, three dozen horses had their legs broken and had to be shot during filming, resulting in the U.S. Congress passing laws to protect animals used in motion pictures.[citation needed]Saratoga (1937). Lionel Barrymore broke his hip after tripping on a cable on the set of that film.Jesse James (1939). A horse was killed during the scene where it was ridden off a cliff into a river. This incident led to the American Humane Association opening a Hollywood office in 1940 and monitoring the treatment of animals in films.The Wizard of Oz (1939). Margaret Hamilton was badly burned during a scene in which her character, the Wicked Witch of the West, "vanished" in a burst of flame and smoke. An elevator was to lower her under the stage, after which a gout of flame would be released; during one take, the pyrotechnic device went off too soon. Hamilton suffered second-degree burns on her face and third-degree burns on her right hand. The studio physician was called in and Hamilton was saved any further injury. Her stunt double Betty Danko was also injured in a scene involving a smoking broomstick. Buddy Ebsen suffered a severe reaction to the aluminum powder which was dusted over his Tin Woodman makeup and aggravated a congenital bronchial condition. He was unable to continue working on the production and was replaced by Jack Haley.Hotel Imperial (1939). Actor Ray Milland was seriously injured while filming a cavalry charge scene through a small village. While making a planned jump over an obstacle, the horse's saddle came loose and Milland fell into a pile of masonry. He spent a week in hospital with concussion, a three-inch gash to his forehead and a badly injured left hand.1940s
Citizen Kane (1941). While filming, Orson Welles tripped down a staircase and chipped his anklebone, forcing him to use a wheelchair for the next two weeks. Welles also gashed his own hand during a scene where he destroyed a room. Welles quickly improvised, grabbing a curtain and using it to cover his bleeding hand while he completed the scene, which appears in the film.My Life for Ireland (1941). An anti-British propaganda film made by Nazi Germany. During the epic final-battle scene set during the Irish Civil War, several extras were killed when one of them stepped on a live land mine. The footage is said to have been included in the release prints, although no proof of this has been established.[citation needed]They Died with Their Boots On (1941). Three horsemen perished during the cavalry charge, one of whom was extra Jack Budlong, whose horse tripped as he rode alongside Errol Flynn. As he fell forward, he had the foresight to toss his sword ahead of him. Unfortunately, it landed handle down and stuck in place. Budlong was impaled on his own sword, and died in a Los Angeles hospital a few hours later.Reap the Wild Wind (1942). According to a biographer, actor John Wayne suffered a chronic inner-ear condition for the rest of his life after filming under-water scenes in this production.Signed with Their Honour (unfinished, 1943). This was to have been a British war film based on the 1942 novel of the same name by James Aldridge. But during filming in Cheshire, a pair of Gladiator biplanes collided, injuring both pilots who managed to escape by parachute. After this incident, the film project was abandoned.The Royal Mounted Rides Again (1945). Addison "Jack" Randall was killed at Canoga Park, California, while riding a horse past the cameras at full speed on 16 July 1945, for a Universal Pictures serial, when he fell from the saddle while trying to retrieve his hat which had blown off his head, and struck a tree. He died shortly thereafter.Unconquered (1947). During the filming of the historical adventure, nine extras suffered burns including one man who had his hair partially burnt off because director Cecil B. DeMille insisted on using real fireballs and flaming arrows for one of the battle scenes. In another incident, stunt woman Polly Burson was filming a scene that required a canoe to go over a waterfall. She missed the tree limb she was supposed to grab onto and fell into the safety net which was below the water's surface. Landing face down in the net, she nearly drowned and was only barely able to struggle upright in time.1950s
Summertime (1955). In one scene, the character of Jane Hudson falls into a canal as she steps backwards while photographing a shop in Campo San Barnaba. Leading lady Katharine Hepburn, concerned about her health, was disinclined to do the stunt herself, but director David Lean felt it would be obvious if he replaced her with a stunt double. He filled the water with a disinfectant that caused it to foam, which added to Hepburn's reluctance, then required her to film the scene four times until he was satisfied with the results. That night, Hepburn's eyes began to itch and water. She was eventually diagnosed with a rare form of conjunctivitis that plagued her for the remainder of her life.The Conqueror (1956). The exterior scenes were shot on location near St. George, Utah, 137 miles (220 km) downwind of the United States government's Nevada Test Site. In 1953, extensive above-ground nuclear weapons testing had occurred at the test site, as part of Operation Upshot–Knothole. Director Dick Powell died of cancer in January 1963, Pedro Armendáriz was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 1960, and committed suicide in 1963 after he learned his condition had become terminal. Susan Hayward, John Wayne and Agnes Moorehead all died of cancer in the 1970s. Cast member actor John Hoyt died of lung cancer in 1991. The cast and crew totaled 220 people. By 1981, 91 of them had developed some form of cancer and 46 had died of the disease. Several of Wayne and Hayward's relatives also had cancer scares as well after visiting the set. Michael Wayne developed skin cancer, his brother Patrick Wayne had a benign tumor removed from his breast and Hayward's son Tim Barker had a benign tumor removed from his mouth. It is not clear, however, that the cancer rate for this film crew was significantly higher than in the general population. Further, while the cast members noted developed a wide variety of cancers, according to The New England Journal of Medicine, leukemia is the only form of cancer known to develop from exposure to fallout radiation.The Ten Commandments (1956). Cecil B. DeMille overcame a minor heart attack while climbing down by ladder from the top of the Ancient Egyptian city gate set while filming the "take three" of the Exodus sequence. In another incident, during filming of a sand-storm scene, an extra carrying a flaming torch tripped over and the torch set fire to the clothing of a young girl standing next to him. The girl only suffered minor burns thanks to the quick thinking of make-up artist Frank Westmore who raced over and tore off her burning costume. During the filming of the same scene, several Egyptian extras were stung by scorpions, or bitten by cobras, both of which had been blown out of their burrows in the sand by the artificially generated storm.Varan the Unbelievable (1958). Minor injuries, exhaustion and dehydration are common hazards for suit actors of the kaiju genre, but during the filming of 'Varan' suit actor Haruo Nakajima (who also portrayed Godzilla for 18 years) was severely burned due to a pyrotechnics mishap. This was the only time in his career that his injuries forced him to be replaced for the remainder of the shoot.Ben-Hur (1959). Joe Canutt, who was Charlton Heston's stunt double, sustained a gash on his chin after being flipped out of his chariot during a chariot race scene.The Horse Soldiers (1959). Fred Kennedy, a veteran stuntman and bit player, was killed in a horse fall on location in Louisiana. Director John Ford was so upset he closed the set and had to film the rest of the scene later in the San Fernando Valley, and in a cut-down version.They Came to Cordura (1959). Dick York suffered a severe back injury during the filming that caused him great pain in his later years, so much so that he was forced to resign from his longtime role of Darrin Stephens on the 1960s television program Bewitched. In York's own words, "Gary Cooper and I were propelling a handcar carrying several 'wounded' men down [the] railroad track. I was on the bottom stroke of this sort of teeter-totter mechanism that made the handcar run. I was just lifting the handle up as the director yelled 'cut!' and one of the 'wounded' cast members reached up and grabbed the handle. I was suddenly, jarringly, lifting his entire weight off the flatbed—one hundred and eighty pounds or so. The muscles along the right side of my back tore. They just snapped and let loose."1960s
The Alamo (1960). Actor Laurence Harvey, who played Colonel W. B. Travis, was injured when a cannon recoiled while firing, with one of the wheels rolling over his foot, fracturing it. He did not reveal his injury until filming of the scene was completed.The Siege of Sidney Street (1960). British actor Leonard Sachs was injured while filming a scene which took place in a burning building. The room and all the props were coated with fire-proof jelly, as was the actor's shoulders and arms. However the special-effects crew neglected to apply the jelly to Sachs' head because to do so would have taken 20 minutes and the production was on a tight schedule. As a result, Sachs suffered burns to his hair and scalp while filming the scene.Spartacus (1960). Actor Charles McGraw suffered a broken jaw on the set of the Roman epic. During the revolt at the Gladiator school, Spartacus (Kirk Douglas) is seen forcing the head of evil trainer Marcellus (McGraw) into a cauldron of soup, drowning him. McGraw's jaw struck the rim of the pot, sustaining a fracture but he managed to continue the scene nonetheless.The Unforgiven (1960). Actress Audrey Hepburn was thrown off a horse while rehearsing for a scene. Hepburn suffered from two broken vertebrae, and later suffered a miscarriage, which has since been attributed to the accident. Hepburn was flown out of set and spent six weeks recovering at a hospital. When she returned, Hepburn wore a back brace for the rest of production, and her wardrobe was redesigned in order to hide the brace.The Guns of Navarone (1961). Actor David Niven almost drowned during filming of an ocean storm scene inside a large water tank. He sustained a cut lip that led the actor being hospitalized with sepsis, which halted production on the film for a month. He insisted on returning to complete filming of his scenes before he had fully recovered, later causing a relapse of his illness that resulted in another seven weeks in hospital.Cape Fear (1962). According to Robert Mitchum, Gregory Peck accidentally punched him for real during the final fight scene. Mitchum felt the impact for days afterward.Flower on the Stone (1962). Soviet actress Inna Burduchenko suffered third-degree burns while filming in a burning barracks on 30 July 1960. She died in the hospital on 15 August. Burduchenko was three months pregnant at the time of her death.How the West Was Won (1962). Stuntman Bob Morgan, husband of Yvonne De Carlo, was seriously injured and lost a leg during a break in filming a gunfight on a moving train. Chains holding logs on a flatbed car broke, crushing Morgan as he crouched beside them.The Manchurian Candidate (1962). While filming a fight scene with Henry Silva, Frank Sinatra broke his little finger during a movement where he smashed through a table. This resulted in problems with his hand for several years and is said to be one of the reasons why he pulled out of a starring role in Dirty Harry, having to undertake surgery to alleviate pains.The War Lover (1962). During aerial filming over the English Channel, parachutists jumped from a vintage B-17 to simulate a bail-out. One of the jumpers, Englishman Mike Reilly, drowned in the sea below.Dr. Strangelove (1964). Peter Sellers was originally to have portrayed a fourth character, Major "King" Kong. However, Sellers injured his ankle while filming a take as Kong. As a result, Slim Pickens played the role of Kong. Scott Simon claims the titular character is in a wheelchair because of Sellers' ankle injury.Goldfinger (1964). Harold Sakata burned his hand while filming the fight at Fort Knox, where his character, Oddjob, gets electrocuted, but continued to act as the scene was still being filmed.The Horror of Party Beach (1964). For the filming of the motorcycle and car chase, members of a local motorcycle club were hired to play a bike gang. Not wanting to be in the back of the field, one of the members sped up to the front and collided with the actor playing the gang leader, triggering a pileup that injured the actor and several bikers. Meanwhile, a police car responding to the incident was involved in its own crash.The Flight of the Phoenix (1965). On 8 July 1965, pilot Paul Mantz crashed and was killed on a second take making a low pass.Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N. (1965). Cameraman Robert King Baggot was killed during filming in Kauai when a huge wave hit his boat and washed him overboard.Thunderball (1965). While filming the scene where SPECTRE agent Angelo crashes the Avro Vulcan into the ocean near The Bahamas, the stunt double for Angelo nearly drowned when the stunt double for Emilio Largo accidentally disconnected both the prop oxygen line and the double's actual oxygen line underneath.High Jungle (1966). On 28 September 1966, Rawhide star Eric Fleming was filming in Peru. During the final stages of shooting, Fleming's dugout canoe overturned in the Huallaga River. Actor Nico Minardos managed to swim to safety, but Fleming was swept away by the current and drowned. Fleming was 41 when he died. His body was recovered three days later.[citation needed]You Only Live Twice (1967). While filming an autogyro flight scene in Miyazaki Prefecture, cameraman John Jordan, who was standing on the landing strut of the camera helicopter, was struck in the foot by the autogyro's blade. Although doctors in the area were able to reattach the foot, he had it amputated when he returned to the UK. A few years later Jordan was killed during the filming of Catch-22.Pontiac commercial (1967). Cameraman Raffael John Esposito and actress Brenda Lee Meinsenheimer were killed in Thousand Oaks, California, when a camera boom suspended from an oncoming camera car crashed through the windshield of their car.Night of the Living Dead (1968). Crew member Gary Streiner accidentally caught himself on fire while attempting to ignite a prop with gasoline. Actor Bill Hinzman managed to put out the fire, saving Streiner's life.The Lion in Winter (1968). Peter O'Toole cut off the tip of his finger in a boating accident during the production of this film. He dropped it in brandy before placing it back on top of his finger and wrapping the digit in bandages. When he removed the bandages weeks later, he found that he had put the fingertip back on the wrong way around.Where Eagles Dare (1968). Derren Nesbitt was injured on set whilst filming the scene in which his character is killed. The blood squib attached to Nesbitt exploded with such force that he was temporarily blinded, though he made a quick recovery.Battle of Britain (1969). Spanish Air Force pilot Don Federico Eglesias Lanzo was killed in a crash at Tablada, Seville.Director (1969). Soviet actor Yevgeni Urbansky died in an accident while performing a stunt during filming on 5 November 1965.Shark! (1969). A stuntman, Jose Marco, was killed when a shark bit through protective netting and mauled him to death on camera. The film was retitled as Shark! to cash in on the controversy that followed.1970s
Barquero (1970). On 28 August 1969, Director Robert Sparr was killed in a plane crash while scouting filming locations with cameraman Gerald Finnerman. The single-engine plane they were riding in went down near the Brush Hollow Reservoir outside of Penrose, Colorado. The pilot was also killed in the crash, but Finnerman survived. One of the film's stars, Lee Van Cleef, was scheduled to accompany Sparr and Finnerman on the scouting trip, but he backed out at the last minute.[citation needed]Catch-22 (1970). Second-unit director John Jordan was killed when he was sucked out of a B-25 Mitchell while filming a bombing scene. He refused to wear a safety harness while the plane was in flight.Golden Eagle (1970). Thai star Mitr Chaibancha was killed while starring as his popular character, the masked crime-fighter Insee Daeng (Red Eagle). On the final day of shooting, Mitr was required to grab a rope ladder hanging from a helicopter. However he only managed to grab the lowest rung. Unaware of this, the helicopter pilot took off and Mitr finally lost his grip and fell to the ground. The accident was caught on film and appeared in the final theatrical release. The fall was removed from the DVD release version.Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970). During aerial rehearsals prior to shooting in Oahu, Hawaii, a Vultee BT-13, modified to resemble a Japanese Val dive-bomber, crashed in a sugar-cane field in Ewa, killing pilot Guy Thomas Strong.Zeppelin (1970). During aerial filming over the Irish Sea, a replica SE5 biplane and an Alouette helicopter camera-ship collided in mid-air. Assistant-director Burch Williams (brother of producer Elmo Williams), cameraman Skeets Kelly and pilots Jim Liddy and Gilbert Chomat were all killed.A Clockwork Orange (1971). During the film's pivotal brainwashing scene, Malcolm McDowell suffered a scratched cornea and temporary blindness from having his eyes propped open for so long. McDowell also suffered a broken rib in the scene in which an actor taunts and attacks him to demonstrate his rehabilitation.[citation needed]Kamen Rider (1971). During a scene for Episode 9 ("The Terrifying Cobra-Man"), lead actor Hiroshi Fujioka fractured his thighbone in a motorcycle stunt when he rode into a telephone pole at 50 mph (80 km/h), forcing him out of action. Producers had to use stock and unused footage, which was dubbed by Rokurô Naya, for the next four episodes, causing a dip in the ratings. Producers eventually had no choice but to substitute him with a second character played by Takeshi Sasaki. Fujioka made a return in Episode 53 ("Monster Jaguarman – Deathmatch by Motorcycle Fight"). As neither actor could be axed, the show ended up having two heroes.[citation needed]Von Richthofen and Brown (1971). Stunt pilot Charles Boddington was killed during filming when the vintage biplane he was flying crashed at Weston Airport near Dublin. The following day, another aircraft crashed, injuring pilot Lynn Garrison and actor Don Stroud.Matlock Police (1971). During the filming of a pursuit-sequence for episode 36 ("End Of The Road"), a vehicle driven by a cast member struck and killed a member of the camera crew after losing control while negotiating a gravel bend.Deliverance (1972). Burt Reynolds injured his coccyx while canoeing.The Godfather (1972). Gianni Russo broke two ribs and cracked his elbow after James Caan threw him over a fence and slammed a garbage can on him during a fight scene.The Last Lion (1972). Sound technician James Chapman was mauled to death by a lion during production on this South African film.[citation needed]Napoleon and Samantha (1972). Jodie Foster was mauled by a lion on the set. The event has since caused Foster to suffer from ailurophobia.The Bell from Hell (1973). On the final day of shooting of this Spanish/French horror film, director Claudio Guerrin Hill died after falling from the bell tower for which he named his film. It is inconclusive whether he jumped or fell accidentally. Juan Antonio Bardem came in to take care of the post-production duties after Hill's death.[citation needed]La Cloche Tibétaine (1973). On 18 June, during the filming of episode 4, "L'escadron d'or" ("The Golden Squadron"), of this French mini-series, actor Roger Delgado and two Turkish film technicians were killed when their car went off of the road and fell into a ravine. Delgado, who was known for his role as the Master in the British television series Doctor Who, was 55 at the time of his death.[citation needed]Enter the Dragon (1973). During a fight-scene, Robert Wall accidentally slashed Bruce Lee in the arm with a broken bottle. After the wound healed, Lee legitimately kicked Wall during the re-shoot with such force that an extra broke his arm trying to catch Wall.The Exorcist (1973). Linda Blair suffered a spinal fracture due to a mechanical failure while filming a scene where her character Regan MacNeil levitates and thrashes violently. The fracture later developed into scoliosis years later after Blair reinjured her back during a motorcycle scene in another film. In addition, actress Ellen Burstyn seriously injured her back while filming a scene where she falls over backwards after her possessed daughter backhands her. The scene was left in the film.[citation needed]Earthquake (1974). Stuntman Bennie E. Dobbins suffered a concussion when knocked off his feet during the filming of a flood scene (which was used in the film). Multiple stunt people suffered minor injuries during filming of a crashing elevator.Primal Man (1974). Actor and stunt performer Janos Prohaska, his son Robert, and 34 others died in an airplane crash while filming this television series.The Eiger Sanction (1975). A number of accidents occurred during the filming of The Eiger Sanction. A 27-year-old English climber, David Knowles, who was a body double and photographer, was killed during a rock fall, and mountaineer Mike Hoover narrowly escaped with his life.The Great Waldo Pepper (1975). During filming of the aerial scenes, experienced stunt pilot Frank Tallman managed to perform two planned crashes without injury. However, a third, accidental crash occurred while landing a Nieuport biplane, when a rudder bar broke at 400 feet, sending his aircraft nose-diving into a hill. Tallman survived, but suffered two cracked vertebrae, required 58 stitches. He took a two week hiatus from filming.Carrie (1976). Actress P.J. Soles, who played Norma in the film, ended up with a ruptured eardrum after pressurized water from a hose sprayed her directly in the ear during the filming of the prom scene. She made a full recovery and the director decided to leave the shot in the movie.Hand of Death (1976). According to his book I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action, Jackie Chan was knocked unconscious when he did one of the stunts on this film.[citation needed]No Deposit, No Return (1976). Dale Van Sickel, first President of the Stuntmen Association, was driving a car that was supposed to go off the end of a wharf in the Disney film. Oil had been applied to the wharf to facilitate the stunt, but too much was put down. The car went out of control and hit an abutment. Van Sickel suffered brain damage, and remained disabled for the rest of his life. Before the accident, he had been semi-retired, only taking a few jobs a year "to keep from getting stale". His family sued Walt Disney Productions.[citation needed]The Omen (1976). Gregory Peck accidentally slammed a car door on the hand of Guglielmo Spoletini, who portrayed the Italian taxi driver. According to Bloody Disgusting, Spoletini's finger was almost amputated.A Bridge Too Far (1977). Stuntman Alf Joint was seriously injured while performing a stunt in which he jumped off a roof. Joint said of the experience that he felt he was being "pushed." In addition, special effects director John Richardson and his assistant Liz Moore were involved in a car crash which killed Moore. Both the crash and Joint's injury are alleged to have been attributed by the "curse" of the 1976 film The Omen, which Joint and Richardson also participated in.Hi-Riders (1977). Stuntman Vic Rivers was killed when he drove his vehicle off a ramp into a pond on the Paramount ranch. He drowned before assistance reached him.[citation needed]Attack of the Killer Tomatoes (1978). The Hiller UH-12 helicopter crash involving Jack Riley and George Wilson was entirely unintentional, but having not been seriously injured, both actors continued by ad-libbing the rest of the scene, and ultimately it was included in the film.Comes a Horseman (1978). Filming the scene where Jason Robards' character is dragged (presumably) to his death, his stunt double Jim Sheppard was killed when a horse that was dragging him veered from its course and caused him to hit his head on a fence post. The scene made it into the film, although it was cut right before the horse passed through the gate that killed Sheppard.[citation needed]Grease (1978). During the filming of the "prom" scene several cast members, involving Michael Tucci, came down with heat related illnesses during filming in the gym, which lacked windows in a room that reportedly reached up to 116 degrees. Another incident during the "Grease Lightning" scene left Jeff Conaway on opioids after falling and injuring his back mildly.Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978). While filming a scene of his character running, Donald Sutherland was struck by a car.Snake in the Eagle's Shadow (1978). Actor Hwang Jang Lee knocked off one of Jackie Chan's teeth after kicking him in the face during a fight scene. Chan's arm was also slashed by a sword that was supposed to be blunt, but the camera kept rolling as he was screaming in pain.[citation needed]Apocalypse Now (1979). In the film's opening scene, Martin Sheen cut his hand after smashing a mirror; he was too drunk to realize that his hand was streaming in blood. During filming on 5 March 1977, Sheen suffered a heart attack. He returned to the set six weeks later.[citation needed]Charlie's Angels (1979). While filming the episode "Angel in a Box" at Indian Dunes in Valencia, California on 3 January 1979, stuntman Bobby Bass was high on cocaine and drove a car that the stuntwomen Julie Ann Johnson and Jeannie Coultar were supposed to jump out of, faster than instructed. Coultar suffered multiple injuries and a concussion. Johnson sustained more serious injuries; though unconscious, Johnson was writhing on the ground. Stunt coordinator Ronnie Rondell had to pin her down to stop the chance of her further injuring herself.CHiPs (1979). While filming an episode, Erik Estrada lost control of his motorcycle and was hurled into a parked car before the 900-pound motorcycle landed on him. Estrada sustained fractured ribs, partially collapsed lungs, a fractured right wrist, and a cracked sternum and clavicle.Revenge (1979). Director Gordon Parks, Jr., cameraman Peter Gilfillian, and two others were killed in a plane crash while filming in Kenya.Steel (1979). A.J. Bakunas died doubling for George Kennedy in a fall from the Kincaid Towers in Lexington, Kentucky. Bakunas had successfully performed a fall from the ninth floor of the construction site, but when he learned that Dar Robinson had broken his record high fall for a non-film-related publicity stunt, Bakunas returned to perform the fall from the top of the 300-foot (91 m) construction site. Bakunas performed the fall expertly, but the airbag split and he was killed.1980s
The Dukes of Hazzard (1980). Assistant cameraman Rodney Mitchell was killed and eight other crew members were injured when their camera truck flipped while rehearsing a chase scene.Kolilakkam (1980). Indian actor Jayan was killed during a stunt scene when the helicopter he was boarding crashed.Magnum, P.I. (1980). Cameraman Rob Van Der Kar was killed in a helicopter crash while filming an episode.That's Incredible! (1980). On 6 July, stunt motorcyclist Steve Lewis suffered extensive foot and knee injuries while attempting to jump over two cars speeding toward him at over 100 mph (160 km/h). On 15 September, while performing a 170-foot (52 m) jump over the fountains of Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada, stunt motorcyclist Gary Wells missed the landing ramp and crashed into a parking lot wall. He sustained a tear in the main artery of his heart, along with broken legs, a fractured pelvis, and a concussion. In addition, six spectators were injured when a 15-foot (4.6 m) section of the wall gave way upon impact.Das Boot (1981). While filming a scene in which the U-96 is caught in a storm, actor Jan Fedder lost his footing and was nearly swept off the conning tower set. Actor Bernd Tauber noticed Fedder was suddenly missing and cried out, "Mann-über-Bord!" ("Man overboard!"). With the cameras still rolling, Tauber helped him to the conning tower hatch. Director Wolfgang Petersen did not realize at first that it was an accident and said, "Good idea, Jan. We'll do that one more time!" before it came upon him. Fedder was hospitalized and his role was partially rewritten so that he was bed-ridden for a short portion of the film. The footage was developed and the scene in which Fedder's character is nearly swept off the submarine is one of the most memorable moments in the film.Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Actor John Rhys-Davies nearly died after suffering from cholera and a 105 °F (40.5 °C) fever while shooting on location in Tunisia.The Cannonball Run (1981). Stuntwoman Heidi von Beltz was left a quadriplegic after being thrown from her car during a crash. She died in October 2015, 35 years after the accident, aged 59.The Five of Me (1981). Camera assistant Jack Tandberg was killed when he was struck by a driverless stunt car during filming of this made-for-television film.For Your Eyes Only (1981). While filming a high-speed chase in the bobsleigh run, the four-man bobsled came out of the run at the wrong place and hit a tree. One of its occupants, a young stuntman named Paolo Rigon, was killed. In the scene where James Bond and Melina Havelock are dragged across the ocean, the stunt doubles for both characters suffered cuts and lacerations when their backs scraped against the coral reef in the Bahamas.Roar (1981). A film about a wildlife preservationist whose family comes to visit him only to be met with his co-habitats, his vast collection of wild animals, which unfortunately attacked the film crew and actors who had to work alongside them, leaving over 70 of them injured on set including cinematographer Jan de Bont, who had his scalp lifted by a lion, resulting in 220 stitches. Lead actress Tippi Hedren fractured her leg and also had scalp wounds after being bucked off by an elephant while she was riding it in addition to being also bitten in the neck by a lion and required 38 stitches. Melanie Griffith (Hedren's daughter) was also attacked, receiving 50 stitches to her face. Because of the injuries on set, crew turnover was high as many never returned to the set. John Marshall was bitten by one of the lions and required 56 stitches.The Sword and the Sorcerer (1981). Stuntman Jack Tyree was killed while doing a high-fall stunt at Griffith Park in Los Angeles. While performing a 78-foot (24 m) fall in heavy costume and makeup, Tyree fell short of his airbag, resulting in a fatal impact.Blade Runner (1982). Daryl Hannah chipped her elbow in eight places during a scene where she accidentally slipped on the pavement and smashed the window of a parked car.Conan the Barbarian. (1982) Actress Sandahl Bergman was filming a sword fight when her finger was almost severed; Bergman was rushed to hospital, where the finger was successfully reattached.First Blood (1982). Sylvester Stallone suffered numerous serious injuries during filming. For example, in the scene where John Rambo escapes being pursued from Deputy Art Galt (Jack Starrett) by jumping off a cliff and into a mass of tree branches. Stallone performed the stunt himself and broke several ribs after filming the scene three times. He suffered bruises to his back after filming 19 takes of the jail scene where Galt clubbed Rambo with a nightstick. Also, while filming for the scene where Rambo first runs into the abandoned mine shaft to elude the guards firing at him, Stallone seriously injured his hand after failing to realize that his hand was on the top of a gunfire squib that went off after. The injury was so severe that Stallone almost lost his thumb. After performing for a stunt in a deleted scene, the stunt driver for Brian Dennehy, Bennie E. Dobbins, suffered a lumbar compression fracture. Dobbins would later pass away from a heart attack in 1988 while filming Red Heat.Fitzcarraldo (1982). The production of this West German film was affected by the numerous injuries and deaths of several indigenous extras who were hired as laborers, as well as two plane crashes that resulted in five critical injuries and one paralysis. A Peruvian logger was forced to amputate his own foot after being bitten by a venomous snake.Pink Floyd – The Wall (1982). During the filming of the scene for the song "One of My Turns", in which the main character tears apart his hotel room, Bob Geldof injured his left hand while ripping off pieces of a wooden closet door; he can be seen briefly looking at his hand. Later in the scene, he is then seen with a shirt wrapped around his hand.[citation needed]World War III (1982). During filming for this made-for-TV movie, director Boris Sagal was fatally injured when his skull was fractured as he walked into the tail rotor blade of a helicopter.Untitled Australian TV commercial (1982). Cameraman Garry Hansen and two others were killed in a helicopter crash.Coolie (1983). While filming a fight scene with Puneet Issar, Amitabh Bachchan was critically injured when he jumped over a table and the corner of the table struck his abdomen, resulting in a splenic rupture and blood loss. Filming was delayed for several months for Bachchan to recover from his injury.High Road to China (1983). During filming in Yugoslavia, a helicopter crashed en route to location. All three on board–copter pilot Nigel Thornton, stunt pilot David Perrin and mechanic Jaron Anderson–were killed in the crash.Midnite Spares (1983). Focus-puller David Brostoff was killed when, during filming of a motor-race scene at Granville, Australia, one of the sprint-cars swerved off the track and struck him, driving his body through two fences. The filmmakers were criticized for a lack of a proper stunt coordinator at the scene and for allowing non-stunt drivers to drive at race-speed.Peterborough Jump (1983). On 5 September 1983, Canadian stuntman Ken Carter attempted to jump a pond in Peterborough, Ontario, with a rocket-powered Pontiac Firebird. He overshot the target landing ramp and was killed when his car crashed on its roof.The Right Stuff (1983). Stuntman Joseph Leonard Svec died while performing a parachute jump that recreated Chuck Yeager's escape from a stalling NF-104. In real life, Yeager's flight helmet had caught fire on colliding with the ejection seat's heated exhaust in mid-air. Svec carried a smoke canister during his freefall to simulate such fire. However, this may have intoxicated the stuntman, causing him to lose consciousness. He failed to open his parachute and fell to his death.Scarface (1983). Production was stalled for two weeks because Al Pacino accidentally burned his hand by holding a barrel of a gun that had been fired.Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983). On 23 July 1982, two children, Myca Dinh Le (aged 7) and Renee Shin-Yi Chen (aged 6), and actor Vic Morrow were killed by a helicopter during production when pyrotechnics struck the tail rotor, causing the helicopter to spin out of control. Morrow and Le were struck by the main rotor and Chen was crushed under the helicopter. The accident led to one of the most prolonged lawsuits in film history and resulted in some major changes in filming codes.City Heat (1984). Burt Reynolds suffered a broken jaw after being hit on the face with a metal chair while filming a fight scene. The injury left him restricted to a liquid diet; he lost 30 lb (14 kg) by the time filming wrapped.Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984). In June 1983, while filming in London, Harrison Ford herniated a disc in his back, forcing him to fly back to Los Angeles for an operation. He returned six weeks later.Cover Up (1984). While waiting for an episode filming to resume, actor Jon-Erik Hexum played Russian roulette with a .44 Magnum loaded with a blank. The gunshot fractured his skull and caused massive cerebral hemorrhaging when bone fragments were forced through his brain. He was rushed to Beverly Hills Medical Center, where he was pronounced brain dead.Dune (1984). Jürgen Prochnow suffered first- and second-degree burns to his face while filming a scene where his character laid unconscious and spewed green gas from his torn cheek. To achieve this effect, a tube connected to a pump was attached to a prosthetic cheek over Prochnow's face. However, a malfunction caused heat to build up inside the fake cheek and spill near molten goo on Prochnow's face once it was torn open.Pepsi commercial (1984). While Michael Jackson was filming a television commercial with his siblings at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, a faulty pyrotechnic went off too early and set his hair on fire, inflicting second- and third-degree burns to his scalp and body. Jackson sued PepsiCo for damages and received a US$1.5 million settlement, which he donated to the Brotman Medical Center in Culver City, California, to establish the Michael Jackson Burn Center for Children. It is widely believed by unnamed sources[who?] that this accident resulted in Jackson's addiction to painkillers and obsession with plastic surgery until his death in 2009.Airwolf (1985). Stuntman Reid Rondell was killed in a helicopter crash.Police Story (1985). During the film's famous pole-sliding scene, Jackie Chan suffered third-degree burns on his hands, nearly broke the seventh and eighth vertebrae on his spine, dislocated his pelvis, and was nearly paralyzed. Also, in the scene where Jackie Chan stops a double-decker bus, the actors were supposed to be thrown through the front window of the second level and land on a car below, but instead they landed right on the hard surface of the road, missing the car. The scene still went into the film.Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985). During filming in Mexico, FX man Cliff Wenger, Jr. was accidentally killed by one of the film's explosions.[citation needed]Rocky IV (1985). Demanding a sense of realism in the boxing match between Rocky Balboa and Ivan Drago, Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren agreed to legitimately spar with each other. Stallone was airlifted from Canada to St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California, and placed on intensive care for eight days after Lundgren delivered a hard punch to his chest, causing his heart to swell and his blood pressure to exceed 200.Runaway Train (1985). During filming in Alaska, a helicopter en route to location struck power lines and crashed, killing pilot Rick Holley.Armour of God (1986). During the filming of a scene in which Jackie Chan jumped from a wall to a tree branch, the branch snapped off and Chan fell 15 feet to the ground below. He hit his head on a rock, causing part of his skull to crack and a fragment to lodge in his brain. He now has a plastic plug in a permanent hole in his skull and hearing-loss in the right ear and has since called this stunt "the closest (he) had ever come to death."Vendetta dal futuro (Hands of Steel, 1986). During filming of the Italian sci-fi action film in Arizona, a helicopter attempted to fly beneath the Navajo Bridge but crashed, killing the pilot Dan Nasca and Italian actor Claudio Cassinelli.Maximum Overdrive (1986). Director of photography Armando Nannuzzi was seriously injured when a radio-controlled lawnmower used in a scene went out of control and struck a block of wood used as a camera support, shooting out wood splinters. The splinters were fired at Nannuzzi's face, resulting in him losing an eye. Nannuzzi sued Stephen King on 18 February 1987, for $18 million in damages due to unsafe working practices. The suit was settled out of court.Top Gun (1986). On 16 September 1985, aerobatic pilot Art Scholl crashed his Pitts S-2 camera-plane off the southern Californian coast near Carlsbad. Neither the aircraft nor Scholl's body were ever recovered.The Wraith (1986). During filming of a car-chase scene in the low-budget sci-fi action film in Arizona, assistant cameraman Bruce Ingram was killed when an overloaded camera car crashed on a mountain road.Full Metal Jacket (1987). Actor Vincent D'Onofrio, who had deliberately increased his weight to 280 pounds in order to play the overweight U.S. Marine Corps recruit Leonard Lawrence (Pvt. Pyle), twisted his knee during filming of the boot-camp scenes, injuring it severely. D'Onofrio required surgical reconstruction.Million Dollar Mystery (1987). Stuntman Dar Robinson died in a motorcycle accident after a dangerous stunt had been filmed and the medics on the set had been dismissed. Robinson, famous for his jumps off Toronto's CN Tower, drove his motorcycle off a cliff.The Squeeze (1987). Veteran stuntman Victor Magnotta drowned while performing a car stunt in which he drove the vehicle off a Hoboken pier and plunged into the Hudson River. He was pinned in the car, and could not escape before drowning.The Untouchables (1987). While filming the first take of the scene when his character is riddled with bullets from Frank Nitti (Billy Drago)'s tommy gun, Sean Connery caught dust in his eye and had to be hospitalized. Film director Brian De Palma recalled having to beg Connery to do a second take of the scene.Braddock: Missing in Action III (1988). On location in the Philippines, a helicopter hired by the Cannon Group crashed into Manila Bay, killing four Filipino soldiers (who were working as extras) and wounding five other people on the ground. This helicopter accident occurred the same day the "not guilty" Twilight Zone verdict was handed down in a Los Angeles Superior Court.Die Hard (1988). Bruce Willis lost two-thirds of his hearing after firing a gun loaded with extra-loud blanks from underneath a table.Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988). While filming a rooftop scene, Ellie Cornell accidentally slipped and her torso was cut by a large nail. She lost a large amount of blood but recovered, going on to continue on with the film.Red Heat (1988). Stuntman and director Bennie Dobbins suffered a fatal heart attack while filming a fight scene in freezing conditions outdoors in Austria. The scene required Arnold Schwarzenegger and another actor to fight near-naked in deep snow. Dobbins over-exerted himself trying to install fan heaters in the snow to prevent the actors suffering hypothermia.The Abyss (1989). Actor Ed Harris almost drowned during an underwater sequence. Despite him yelling "Cut" when he ran out of air, the production crew did not give him oxygen until he passed out. The trauma caused him to break down in his car on the way home.Back to the Future Part II (1989). During a "hoverboard" stunt scene, stuntwoman Cheryl Wheeler-Dixon was accidentally bounced off a pillar before falling thirty feet onto concrete, sustaining serious facial and wrist injuries.Cyborg (1989). While filming, Jackson "Rock" Pinckney lost an eye during filming when Jean-Claude Van Damme accidentally struck him in the eye with a prop knife. Pinckney sued Van Damme in a North Carolina court and was awarded $487,500.Gone in 60 Seconds 2 (1989, unfinished). Director/actor H. B. Halicki was killed in Buffalo, New York, when a water tower he was planning to topple fell prematurely, hitting a telephone pole that then struck him in the head. The film was scrapped as a result of the accident.Hired to Kill (1989). Stuntman Clint Carpenter was killed and three others and the pilot were injured in a helicopter crash in Corfu, Greece.The Karate Kid Part III (1989). Actor Sean Kanan suffered internal bleeding after doing 20 takes of being thrown out a door and landing on his stomach. He collapsed at a Las Vegas hotel four days after shooting the scene and was discovered to have two quarts of blood pooled in his abdomen.The Return of the Musketeers (1989). On 20 September 1988, Roy Kinnear suffered a broken pelvis in a horseback riding accident and died of a heart attack the following day.The Sword of Tipu Sultan (1989). The largest number of on-set deaths in film history took place during the filming of this Indian made-for-TV movie. A total of 62 extras and crew members died after a fire broke out and they were trapped inside the burning film studio. Director and star Sanjay Khan suffered major burns and spent 13 months in hospital undergoing 72 operations.1990s
Back to the Future Part III (1990). In the scene where Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen and his gang roped and hanged Marty McFly, Michael J. Fox lost consciousness for a few seconds from being hanged before an extra realized he was legitimately being asphyxiated and the noose was lowered. He recounted this event in his autobiography, Lucky Man.Delta Force 2: The Colombian Connection (1990). Five people were killed in a helicopter crash during filming in the Philippines. The fatalities here were: Jojo Imperiale (pilot), Geoff Brewer (actor), Gadi Danzig (cameraman), Mike Graham (key grip) and Don Marshall (gaffer).Bikini Island (1991). Stuntman Jay C. Currin was killed on the first day of filming when a stunt fall off a 55-foot (17 m) cliff went wrong and he landed on some rocks instead of the airbag that had been placed to break his fall.Highlander II: The Quickening (1991). Christopher Lambert and Michael Ironside both suffered injuries during filming. Lambert chipped one of Ironside's teeth during a fight scene, while Ironside inadvertently severed part of Lambert's finger during a sword-fight scene.Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). Linda Hamilton suffered permanent hearing damage in one ear during filming when she fired a gun inside an elevator without using her ear plugs. She also injured her knees from falling on the ground during multiple re-shoots of her character being hit with a nightstick by actor Ken Gibbel. Frustrated by Gibbel's refusal to hit her properly, Hamilton legitimately knocked him out with a broom handle during the escape scene. Arnold Schwarzenegger nearly broke some fingers while twirling his shotgun with one hand. While there was a shotgun with a lever loop lengthened to fit Schwarzenegger's hand, he mistakenly picked up a standard-sized unit and injured his hand while attempting the stunt.The Bodyguard (1992). A worker died when he was crushed between two lighting-equipment cranes during filming.Patriot Games (1992). While filming the climactic speedboat fight scene, Sean Bean sustained a gash above his left eyebrow after Harrison Ford struck him with a metal hook.Wind (1992). Australian stuntman Chris Anderson had to have a leg amputated below the knee after he was severely injured when a 30-foot (9.1 m) yacht collided with the jet-boat on which Anderson was eating his lunch during a break in filming.999 (1993). While recreating a real-life near-fatal parachute incident in which a parachutist tangled his equipment with the aircraft's landing gear before freeing himself, veteran stuntman Tip Tipping leapt out of a Cessna and crashed into woods near Ellingham, Northumberland, he was pronounced dead when medical staff arrived.Super Mario Bros. (1993). Bob Hoskins was stabbed four times, electrocuted, and was nearly drowned. During one scene, Hoskins broke a finger when the door of a van slammed on his hand.Crime Story (1993). Jackie Chan's legs were crushed between two cars during a dangerous stunt scene.[citation needed]The Fugitive (1993). Harrison Ford damaged some ligaments in his leg while filming a chase scene in the woods. Because he refused to have surgery until filming was wrapped, his character Dr. Richard Kimble walked with a limp throughout the film.Gettysburg (1993). During filming of the battle scenes on Little Round Top, Bradley Egen, an extra playing a Union soldier, was unintentionally struck in the head by the butt of a musket and suffered a mild concussion.Sliver (1993). Cameraman Michael Benson suffered lung injuries after a helicopter crash left him trapped for two days inside a Hawaiian volcano crater. The crew aboard the helicopter was flying over an active volcano to shoot the film's original opening sequence, but the footage was lost in the crash.The Crow (1994). On 31 March 1993, American actor and martial artist Brandon Lee was accidentally shot and killed in North Carolina with a .44 magnum gun that was intended to fire blanks but contained a bullet left behind after a dummy round had been inserted and removed. Also, on 1 February 1993 on the opening day of filming, a carpenter was severely shocked and burned when his scissor lift struck power lines.Friends (1994). In the Season 3 episode "The One Where No One's Ready", which originally aired on September 26, 1996, there is a scene in which Joey Tribbiani (played by Matt LeBlanc) quickly leaps into a chair as part of a plot where he and Chandler Bing (played by Matthew Perry) fight over said chair. While LeBlanc was able to leap into the chair without issue for three takes, upon shooting a fourth take, he tripped over a coffee table and hit the chair in such a way that he dislocated his shoulder. The injury required LeBlanc to wear a sling, temporarily postponing production of the episode and requiring the injury to be written into the show for the following two episodes, humorously explained as an injury Tribbiani received while jumping on his bed.L.A. Heat (1995). Stuntman Paul Dallas died when he missed the airbag for a 53-foot fall.Mortal Kombat (1995). There were a few injuries to the lead actors when filming commenced. During filming of the battle between Liu Kang and Reptile, actor Robin Shou fractured his ribs after multiple takes of hitting the pillar. Actress Bridgette Wilson also got injured, dislocating her shoulder while performing a stunt; she was quickly able to continue working when paramedics put it back into place. Actor Linden Ashby recalled urinating blood after being kicked in the kidney.Rumble in the Bronx (1995). Jackie Chan injured his right leg while performing a stunt where he jumps onto a boat. He spent much of the remaining shooting time with one leg in a cast. When it came to the film's climax, the crew colored a sock to resemble the shoe on his good foot, which Chan wore over his cast. The lead actress Françoise Yip and several stunt doubles were also injured during the shooting of a motorcycle stunt, with several people suffering broken limbs and ankles.Seven (1995). In a scene where Detective David Mills (Brad Pitt) chased John Doe in the rain, Pitt fell and his arm went through a car windscreen, requiring surgery. This accident was written into the script to explain Pitt wearing a cast over his arm. Coincidentally, the original script did call for Pitt's character to be injured during this sequence but not to his hand.Vampire in Brooklyn (1995). Angela Bassett's stunt-double Sonja Davis fell to her death in a stunt gone wrong. Her death led to a $50 million wrongful-death lawsuit against Paramount Pictures.Waterworld (1995). During production, actresses Jeanne Tripplehorn and Tina Majorino were thrown overboard from the trimaran they were on when its bowsprit snapped. Nearly a dozen rescue divers jumped in and brought them back on board. Kevin Costner nearly died when he was caught in a squall while tied to the mast of his trimaran. In addition, several cast and crew members suffered from seasickness and jellyfish stings. Costner's stunt double, Laird Hamilton, was lost at sea for a few hours when his jet ski ran out of fuel after the filming of a jet ski scene.Ah Kam (1996). In October 1995, actress Michelle Yeoh, who usually performs her own stunts, was seriously injured during shooting of the film about the life of a stuntwoman, when she misjudged an 18-foot (5.5 m) jump off a bridge onto a truck. She fractured a vertebra and was in traction for a month. The sequence can be seen at the end of the film.Black & Decker commercial (1996). Veteran pilot Michael Tamburro died after suffering a broken neck and head injuries in a helicopter crash caused by hitting a main rotor blade on a rock on the side of a desert butte. Co-pilot Alan Purwin suffered a broken arm, and flying debris from the crash injured a crew member. Producers Propaganda Films had not obtained a permit to use a helicopter when filming, which the firm claimed was due to an unintentional oversight.Love Serenade (1996). During the filming of a scene on a grain silo, stuntman Collin Dragsbaek (doubling actor George Shetsov) died when he fell onto a faulty airbag.Gone Fishin' (1997). Janet Wilder was killed and four other people, including her husband, were injured when a speedboat driver misjudged a ramp and the speedboat landed in a crowd.Pleasantville (1997). Cameraman Brent Hershman died when he fell asleep driving home after a 19-hour workday on the set of the film. Hershman's death resulted in a wrongful-death suit, claiming that New Line Cinema, New Line Productions and Juno Pix Inc. were responsible for the death as a result of the lengthy work hours imposed on the set, and spurred a call to limit filming hours.Titanic (1997). Several extras were injured during the film's climactic sinking scene where passengers fell and hit parts of the ship. Injuries ranged from a broken ankle to cracked ribs, a fractured cheekbone, and a ruptured spleen. Kate Winslet suffered hypothermia from filming the water scenes after she refused to wear a wetsuit under her dress. During the scene where J
