We associate actors with glamour and think their job is easy. But sometimes actors’ jobs can be really hard. They have to perform certain stunts that can be thrilling to watch. But are not so fun to act in. There are scenes that take a lot of risks to do and involve taking safety precautions. Sometimes, it can be risky even after the safety equipment. Also, sometimes it can be so risky that the actors almost died on set. It could be anything like an equipment malfunction. There are actors a few actors who have shared such experiences. Check out this list to know who they are.
Elisabeth Shue in Cocktail
There is an aerial shot in the film, while filming the crew had to go up on a helicopter to film the shot. It would land after every take so that the actors could see the shot and get notes. This event was shared by the camera operator Bill Bennett. As the crew would only for a short time, the helicopter would be left running. He wrote, “The rotor is invisible when it is spinning, and if you walk into it, it will kill you instantly. It is a totally ‘no go’ area when working around helicopters.” But once it so happened that the actress, after watching the foot, again ran towards the helicopter. The pilot was trained, And Tom Cruise was quick to react and he grabbed the actress. It saved her.
Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow
Emily Blunt in a promotion show talked about it. A scene where Emily was driving an old car too fast with Cruise in the passenger seat. She told, “We do first take, it went really well. The stunt guy came over and he went, ‘Okay, just do it again but go even faster.’ I was like, ‘No problem. So we start. I tear down this park and Tom’s being very quiet behind me and suddenly I just hear him under his breath as I approach the right-hand turn, I hear him going, ‘Brake, brake, brake. Brake. Brake, brake, brake, brake, brake, brake. Oh god, oh god, Em. Brake, brake, brake.’ And I left it too late and so drove us into a tree, and I almost killed Tom Cruise.” But he laughed it off later.
Dylan O’ Brien in Maze Runner: The Death Cure
While shooting the Maze Runner: The Death Cure, Dylan O’ Brien was nearly killed in an accident on-set. Reportedly, he was hit by a car and suffered multiple injuries. They were quite serious and because of that, the filming of the movie had to stay at a halt for almost a year. Brien himself talked about the incident and said that it scared him. He was differently wired now and was afraid to step on the set. The actor felt differently about filming and also became more cautious while performing stunts. He told, “just really dialed in and close…with the stunt team that [he’s] working with rather than just sort of blindly putting [his] trust in other people’s hands.”
Brendan Fraser while shooting The Mummy
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Brendan Fraser talked about his near-death experience on set. He almost died filming the scene where his character is being hanged. The wide shots were shot with the stuntman while there were some close-ups of Fraser with the nose around his neck. He shared, “So, the stuntman took up the tension on the rope, and I went up on the balls of my feet, then I guess he took the tension up again, and I’m not a ballerina, I can’t stand on my tip-toes. I remember seeing the camera start to pan around, and then it was like a black iris at the end of a silent film. It was like turning down the volume switch on your home stereo, like the Death Star powering down. I regained consciousness and one of the EMTs was saying my name.”
Bob Denver on the set of Gilligan’s Island
Despite Gilligan’s Island being a lighthearted series, Bob Denver almost had a near-death experience on the set. And he did that while performic a comedic scene. There is a scene in the show where the actor’s character Gilligan is stuck in Howell’s Hut in an attempt to save himself from a lion. So, he piles furniture at the door only to realize the lion was already in with him. While the actor is trying to run out of the room, the lion who was standing on the twin bed lunged at him. The trainer immediately tackled the lion. Though the actor was safe it must’ve been scary.
