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Famous Movie Set Deaths

Chelsea Hernandez |
November 4, 2013 | 2:14 p.m. PST

Staff Reporter

Actor Brandon Lee's grave next to father Bruce Lee (Creative Commons).
Actor Brandon Lee's grave next to father Bruce Lee (Creative Commons).
If being a part of a film is not already nerve-racking enough, the added threat of possible danger, or even death, does not help to alleviate the anxiety. For many actors or crew members of a film, the faint shadow of fatality hovers overhead throughout the production of a film, no matter how much people stress safety.

This shadow manifests solely from the sheer number of intricate corks and screws that work together to create cohesive shots that make up a motion picture or television episode. From these many moving parts of production, accidents are bound to happen at some point.

However, for many of the people working to make the final cut of the film, the threat of these accidents does not become completely apparent until it has already happened. For some of these actors and crew members, the freak accidents that took their lives will forever be remembered as tragedies that no one could have ever expected. Here are just five of the many infamous movie set deaths that no one will ever forget:

"The Dukes of Hazzard," 1980

Cameraman Rodney Mitchell experienced a horrific accident that hurt  almost a dozen other people. When a camera car went out of control, it crushed Mitchell. It left many in serious conditions, but he was the only one of the dozen hurt that ended up dying. 

"Sword and the Sorcerer," 1981

Stunt man Jack Tyree, one of the many stunt men who have had horrible accidents on sets, died from a free  fall. While he was falling, he completely missed the air bag on landing, and died from the impact.

"Twilight Zone: The Movie," 1982

The infamous Vic Morrow was the victim of a horrible stunt gone  wrong. During one of the scenes in the movie, a helicopter accidentally crashed into Vic Morrow,  along  with two Vietnamese children. During the crash, one of the blades of the helicopter  decapitated Morrow, killing him instantly. The crash has remained a debatable subject for years, and criminal charges were pressed against the director after the accident.  

READ MORE: The Twilight Zone Tragedy

"The Last Return of the Three Musketeers," 1988

British actor Roy Kinnear was riding a horse for a scene as the character Planchet. When he fell, he broke his pelvis. He was taken to a hospital, but died of a heart attack. 

"The Crow," 1993

The main actor, Brandon Lee, was fatally wounded by a prop mishap. One of the prop guns used to shoot Lee’s character when he walks in on the attack of his girlfriend in theirapartment was mistakenly loaded with a real bullet behind the blank bullet. When the gun was fired, the real bullet hit Lee in the stomach, and he died at a nearby hospital. 

While many members of a production team can suffer different types of fatalities, it is important to note that no one is exempt from the possibility of death. Everyone on a set takes a risk, some more than others, but everyone is at some sort of risk. Freak accidents can never be fully expected, but precautions are always taken. The best route any crew member can take is to be careful, alert, and professional, but never forget to enjoy the craft they take part in. 

Reach Staff Reporter Chelsea Hernandez here.



 

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