Accidents On Film Sets: Alec Baldwin Incident Not The First; Here Are Other Such Cases

American actor Alec Baldwin was in shock after an accidental shooting on the set of his movie ‘Rust’ that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza. The incident took place at the Bonanza Creek Ranch, south of Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Well, it’s not the first such incident on a set. Following is a list of incidents resulting in accidental deaths and injuries to cast and crew members during filming:

The Sword of Tipu Sultan, 1989

At least 62 cast and crew members were killed when a major fire broke out on the sets in Mysore. Actor Sanjay Khan suffered severe burns, spending over a year in hospital to recover.

Coolie, 1983

Amitabh Bachchan suffered serious life-threatening injuries in the abdomen during the shooting of a fight sequence with actor Puneet Issar in Bengaluru. Bachchan recovered after a long hospital stay and the film went on to become a superhit.

Indian 2

Three technicians were killed and nine others injured after a huge crane crashed on the sets of the yet-to-be-released film. Actors Kamal Haasan and Kajal Aggarwal, and director Shankar had a narrow escape. The incident happened during shooting near Chennai.

The Crow, 1993

Brandon Lee, son of Bruce Lee, was killed on the set after being shot accidentally with a prop gun by actor Michael Massee. Brandon Lee was aged 28. A .44-caliber bullet hit him in the abdomen and lodged in his spine.

Skiptrace, 2014

Chan Kwok-Hung drowned during a water shoot for the movie starring Jackie Chan.

Roar, 1981

Cinematographer Jan de Bont was injured by a lion during shooting, as also actor Tippi Hedren. More than 70 crew members were injured on the set.

Top Gun, 1986

Aerobatic and stunt pilot Art Scholl died during shooting when the plane he was piloting crashed into the Pacific Ocean. The film starring Tom Cruise was dedicated to Scholl.

The Conquerer, 1956

At least 90 cast and crew members developed cancer after shooting in an area in Nevada where nuclear testing had taken place before.

FIREARMS ON SETS

A spokesperson for Baldwin told Associated Press that the gun in question was firing blanks but later it emerged that the prop gun contained live rounds.

But even the use of blanks is not without risk. Blanks are usually cartridges without bullets.

Experts are usually there on the sets to ensure safety procedures are followed and accidents do not happen.

The assistant director who handed Baldwin the prop gun did not know it contained live rounds, the affidavit by Santa Fe Sheriff’s Department Detective Joel Cano said, reported Reuters.

He said the prop gun was one of three on a cart outside a building. One of them was taken by the assistant director who handed it to Baldwin.

“As the assistant director handed the gun to Baldwin, (he) yelled ‘cold gun’, indicating the prop gun did not have any live rounds,” the affidavit said.