20 Insane Accidents That Occurred During Film Productions

Big budgets for a film usually mean grand set locations and life like effects. There is always a bit of danger that goes into capturing these stunts and effects and while most will go through easily without a hitch, some film productions experience unbelievable accidents. From animals misbehaving, actors being rushed to the hospital to even fatal incidents, these accidents might have gone unnoticed while you’re enjoying the flick at home. You might spot your favorite block buster hit in our list of 20 crazy accidents that happened during filming.

Twilight Zone: The Movie

During filming a scene that was based around a Vietnam battle, a helicopter accidentally crashed where the rotor decapitated Vic Morrow and child actors My-ca Dinh Le and Renee Shin-Yi Chen. Director John Landis was sent to trial for the event but the jury who witnessed the captured footage believed that Landis had no intentions of putting people in harm.

The Crow

Actor Brandon Lee, Bruce Lee’s son, was filming The Crow when a slug was misplaced during a scene where Brandon Lee’s character gets shot. The result cost Brandon Lee’s life.

The Conqueror

91 crew members, including actor John Wayne, contracted cancer. Many believed that the crew got cancer while filming The Conqueror which was near a radioactive fallout test site.

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Stunt double for Vin Diesel, Harry L. O’Connor, was filming a scene in which he had to rappel down a line and land on a submarine. However, during the stunt he hit a bridge at high speed and was killed instantly. The scene was kept in but edited the last few seconds out before impact all in honor of Harry L. O’Connor’s last work.

Top Gun

Stunt pilot Art Scholl was filming a special stunt in-plane footage when he lost control of the plane and crashed into the Pacific Ocean. Neither his body nor plane were recovered.

Pearl Harbor

A stunt plane hit a palm tree during filming of Pearl Harbor and crashed. The pilot recovered and the scene was caught on footage.

The Edge

During a scene featuring Anthony Hopkins, his character is hanging for dear life with freezing cold rivers below him. Hopkins actually fell into the river and was immediately rushed to the hospital for hypothermia.

Jumper

A set decorator was crushed under a large concrete wall. The location was being taken apart when a backhoe accidentally struck the wall, causing it to collapse on top of him.

The Final Season

Cameraman Roland Schlotzhauer was capturing a parade scene in a helicopter when it struck power lines causing it to crash into a field. Everyone on board but the cameraman survived.

The Return of The Musketeers

Actor Roy Kinnear was filming a scene while riding on his horse when he fell off. The result was a broken pelvis but the following day Roy Kinnear had a fatal heart attack. Because of the death, the film director ended his career.

Fury

While filming in Oxfordshire, stuntmen were preparing for a battle scene when one was actually stabbed in the shoulder by a bayonet.

Thor: The Dark World

Jaimie Alexander fell hard when she slipped off a metal staircase during a scene. The fall caused a slip disc in her thoracic spine, chipped 11 of her vertebrae, a shoulder dislocation along with a tear of the rhomboid. Filming was put off a month for her to recover.

Now You See Me

During the water chamber escape in Now You See Me, actress Isla Fisher almost drowned as she was having a tough time unlocking her shackles. She was stuck in the chamber for three minutes.

The Hobbit

During the filming of The Hobbit, several animals were killed or injured. The deaths ranged from a sinkhole, bad conditions of the stable or purely unsupervised animals that killed or trampled other animals.

The Expendables 2

During the filming of a stunt in which a rubber boat exploded, one stuntman was killed while another was left in critical condition that required five-hours of operation before doctors felt he was in a stable condition.

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hollows

Daniel Radcliffe’s stunt double David Holmes was filming a stunt when he fell and injured his spine. The fall was so severe that David Holmes became paralyzed.

The Hangover Part II

Stuntman Scott McLean suffered permanent brain and physical injuries while filming a scene involving moving taxis. He was leaning out of the window when he failed to dodge an oncoming car. Scott’s head collided with the other car. The stuntman sued Warner Bros. for unspecified damages.

The Dark Knight

Cameraman Conway Wickliffe was killed when he was filming a stunt car. His vehicle missed a 90-degree turn and crashed into a tree.

Ocean’s Deadliest

Australia’s Steve Irwin was capturing footage of a stingray when it struck Steve with its tail. He later died on a boat trying to get back into the mainland for help.

The Last Samurai

In one of the battle scenes of The Last Samurai, an extra was kicked in the groin by a horse but he maintained his composure. The whole sequence can be viewed on the actual scene released for the movie.