hexum - 10 people who died on movie sets

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10 people who died on movie sets


Ben Affleck or Matt Damon once said something like “even bad movies are really hard to make.” As much as we bitter folk love to Roker all over Hollywood insiders for their vapid lifestyles and industry, it’s important to remember cast and crew members get killed on the job all the time. I don’t have the statistics to prove the “all the time” part, but if you Google “died on a movie set” tons of stories come up. Tons. Probably this one, too.

I’m not talking about just stuntmen either. Those people are paid to risk their lives. Tragedy has befallen regular people and actors, maybe even caterers. Please think of this an in memoriam for those who lost their lives in really awful ways during production.

1. John Jordan, Catch-22
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The second unit director fell 2,000 over the Gulf of Mexico after getting sucked out of an open door on a plane. (He wasn’t wearing a harness.) Three years earlier, Jordan had one of his legs amputated after a rotor blade from a helicopter cut him while filming “You Only Live Twice.” Some have speculated he had a death wish.

2. Vic Morrow, Twilight Zone: The Movie
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Morrow was decapitated by a helicopter that crashed on him and two child actors during what a Vietnam War scene. His line was supposed to be “I’ll keep you safe, kids. I promise. Nothing will hurt you, I swear to God.”

3.Art Scholl, Top Gun
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The 53-year old stunt pilot performed an upside-down spin while picking up aerial footage for Tony Scott’s bromance when he crashed into the Pacific Ocean. Other airmen heard Scholl mutter his last words “I’ve got a problem here” over the radio.

4. Brandon Lee, The Crow
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Bruce Lee’s son was shot and killed while filming a gunfire scene for the comic book movie. There were supposed to be only blanks in the weapons used, but, once a 44-caliber bullet was found in Lee’s body, everyone suspected murder. One month later, the district attorney concluded the cause of death was negligence on part of the crew.

5. Conway Wickliffe, The Dark Knight
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The stunt technician was holding a camera while being driven in a Nissan 4×4 trying to film the chase scene where the Batmobile blows up. The Nissan failed to make a 90-degree turn in time and crashed 20mph into a tree.

6. Kun Liu, The Expendables 2
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The stand-in for Jet Li didn’t recover from an explosion while filming on location in October 2011. Liu’s parents filed a lawsuit against Millennium Films for damages last summer.

7. The Crocodile Hunter, Ocean’s Deadliest
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A stingray barbed Steve Irwin’s heart in 2006 while he was underwater filming the nature documentary. Watch footage of his death on YouTube if you want here.

8. Jon-Erik Hexum, Cover Up
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During a delay in production, the 26 year-old was bored and decided to play faux Russian roulette with a .44 Magnum. The blank bullet cartridge that he fired at his right temple caused a severe hemorrhage and, almost a week later,he was declared brain dead.

9. Roy Kinnear, The Last Return of the Three Musketeers
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The British actor fell from a horse and fractured his pelvis on location in Spain. He died of a heart attack the next day in the hospital.

10. Martha Mansfield, The Warrens of Virginia
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The silent film star was resting inside a car in between takes when a passerby lit a cigarette and accidentally flicked the match into the automobile. The match landed on Martha’s costume, which was a giant (and flammable) Civil War-era dress that went up in flames. She died in the hospital from severe burns the next day.

  1. January 16, 2013 at 11:53 pm, Jonny Preece said:

    russian roulette with blanks! clever guy

    Reply

    • January 17, 2013 at 3:49 am, Bailey Bednar said:

      A Darwin Award™ winner!

      Reply

    • January 22, 2013 at 10:51 pm, Steve Correll said:

      just cause it's a "blank" doesn't make it safe especially at close range anyone with a basic knowledge of physics would know that

      Reply

  2. January 17, 2013 at 1:26 am, Michael Rathbun said:

    John Candy?

    Reply

    • January 17, 2013 at 1:47 am, David Staples said:

      died in his sleep at his hotel.

      Reply

    • January 17, 2013 at 3:10 am, Kyle Christopher said:

      why is the preview for this a picture of fourtet.

      Reply

  3. January 17, 2013 at 12:51 am, Sam Jackson Covers Taylor Swift and More Links said:

    [...] Hollywood Rag:  Jessica Is In Dino Style [...]

    Reply

  4. January 17, 2013 at 12:56 pm, Fred Derf said:

    I don't know if this would count given that it didn't take place on a "set", but Meredith Hunter's stabbing by the Hell's Angel in the Rolling Stones doc film Gimme Shelter was pretty memorable.

    Reply

  5. January 17, 2013 at 3:40 pm, Drew Krotzer said:

    Halle Berry's Career died on the set of Catwoman…

    Reply

    • February 23, 2013 at 7:21 am, Blud Crimson said:

      You fuckin asshole.

      Reply

    • March 25, 2013 at 3:49 am, Drew Krotzer said:

      Tissue?

      Reply

    • April 30, 2013 at 4:20 pm, Kenny D. Mc Phail said:

      hahahahahaha….ha the truth hurts

      Reply

  6. January 20, 2013 at 11:50 pm, Timothy Murray said:

    Lmao

    Reply

  7. January 28, 2013 at 11:33 pm, Randy Browne' said:

    jennifer lawrence is simple beautiful! id eat your shorts maam! hahaha

    Reply

  8. February 01, 2013 at 5:09 am, Harley Harding said:

    I loved that time travelling show that Jon-Erik Hexum was on.

    Reply

    • February 23, 2013 at 6:16 am, Chris Lew said:

      Voyagers.

      Reply

  9. February 13, 2013 at 12:16 am, Kenneth Glowatski said:

    Just proofs my theory… actors are stupid.

    Reply

    • February 19, 2013 at 11:26 pm, Jay Hash said:

      And you comment is even bigger proof to the theory that internet commentors are stupid AND assholes…

      And it's "proves", you uneducated schmuck.

      Reply

    • March 07, 2013 at 4:22 am, Ryan Harshbarger said:

      "It proofs your theroy?"

      Reply

    • April 04, 2013 at 4:35 am, Dillon Dawson said:

      "proves,"*

      Reply

  10. February 13, 2013 at 12:29 am, Robert Beatty said:

    Didn't one of the stuntmen in one of the Rambo movies die after Stallone threw him out of a helicopter?

    Reply

  11. February 14, 2013 at 3:34 am, Jason Middleton said:

    Your forgetting bruce lee?

    Reply

  12. February 21, 2013 at 2:07 am, Tony Moliterno said:

    actually….while filming the Last scene for The Crow….the day before, the special effects mgr. and crew were sent home…meanwhile a hollowpoint…Fake bullet..was lodged in the wheel gun…that.. Funboy was to shoot at Eric Draven(Brandon Lee)…with the blank round fired at brandon…it lodged in his heart and he died.

    Reply

    • February 22, 2013 at 10:49 pm, Amy-Louise McGarry said:

      You are right up until the last part, it went in through his abdomen and lodged in his spine.

      Reply

  13. February 23, 2013 at 8:41 am, Myanna Pennington said:

    Brandon Lee, noooo what a stupid and easily avoidable way to die! Why weren't people more careful?

    Reply

  14. March 06, 2013 at 2:41 pm, David M. Roberts said:

    You've left out Marty Feldman, while filming "Yellowbeard".

    Reply

    • March 23, 2013 at 11:38 am, Ryan Woolley said:

      He didn't die on set, he died in a hotel of a heart attack.

      Reply

  15. March 12, 2013 at 1:02 pm, Anas Zamir said:

    Does it count as murder if you don't get caught? Brandon lee Death was no Tragedy , Murder is only half the answer. The other half is getting away.

    Reply

  16. March 15, 2013 at 10:00 am, 10 actors who performed their own dangerous stunts | Death and Taxes said:

    [...] don’t have to be a stuntman to die on a movie set. Some people have done it while having a cigarette in between scenes. But for an actor to risk his or her pretty mug on death-defying acts during the [...]

    Reply

  17. March 15, 2013 at 5:02 pm, 10 actors who performed their own dangerous stunts | Brav's Bookmarks said:

    [...] don’t have to be a stuntman to die on a movie set. Some people have done it while having a cigarette in between scenes. But for an actor to risk his or her pretty mug on death-defying acts during the [...]

    Reply

  18. March 16, 2013 at 12:12 am, Dustin Richer said:

    Kevin Smith actor who played Ares on Xena.

    Reply

    • March 21, 2013 at 10:45 am, Maheen Shaiq said:

      He DIED?! :o

      Reply

    • March 23, 2013 at 3:47 am, Dustin Richer said:

      aftr the finnished filming warriors of virtue 2 he climbed some set rigging to get a view of the area and fell to his death.

      Reply

  19. March 16, 2013 at 6:37 am, 10 actors who performed their own dangerous stunts | Stunt Tube said:

    [...] don’t have to be a stuntman to die on a movie set. Some people have done it while having a cigarette in between scenes. But for an actor to risk his or her pretty mug on death-defying acts during the [...]

    Reply

  20. March 20, 2013 at 4:16 pm, Philip Bailey said:

    Eric Fleming of Rawhide drowned on a movie set.

    Reply

  21. March 22, 2013 at 4:05 pm, Aurora Decade said:

    That Steve Irwin death video was fake. Why don't you do some fact checking?

    Reply

  22. March 27, 2013 at 9:36 pm, Alex Moughan said:

    The last three technically didn't die on movie sets. They died in hospitals.

    Reply

  23. March 29, 2013 at 10:52 pm, Ricardo Garcia said:

    You're also forgetting Heath ledger , the joker in the dark knight

    Reply

    • April 03, 2013 at 12:49 am, Priscilla Borino said:

      He didn't die on set while filming. He died of an overdose!

      Reply

  24. May 14, 2013 at 5:52 pm, Tanya Howell said:

    Kevin Smith, who played Ares on Xena, died on the set of the Bruce Willis movie, Tears of the Sun, in 2002 after falling several stories.

    Reply

  25. May 23, 2013 at 10:29 am, Jacqueline Bury said:

    Didn't Bruce Lee, Brandon's father also die on set?

    Reply

    • May 23, 2013 at 10:34 am, Jacqueline Bury said:

      just looked it up.. No, but also far too young.. From cerebral edema. So sad.

      Reply

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