Acting can be a hard job, and some people even say it’s a “cut-throat” world. However, for these six actors, the “cut-throat” part got a little too real when they almost died while filming. Check out these harrowing stories of actors who nearly died on set below.
Number Six: Michael J. Fox – Back to the Future III.
In the scene where Fox is being hanged, he would stand on a box while the crew filmed. However, he didn’t feel like it was authentic enough and decided to do a take without the box beneath him, and he ended up passing out for 30 seconds, nearly dying.
Number Five: Tom Cruise – Edge of Tomorrow.
Cruise nearly died performing one of his own stunts, thanks to costar Emily Blunt. Blunt was driving a car when Cruise began telling her to brake or she would crash. She ended up crashing into a tree, nearly killing Cruise.
Number Four: Jackie Chan – Police Story.
In the scene where Chan jumps onto a metal pole and heroically slides down, he ended up cracking two vertebrae, burning his hands and dislocating his pelvis. The stunt was particularly dangerous, because instead of regular glass, the set had “sugar glass,” which is thicker than glass.
Number Three: Isla Fisher – Now You See Me.
In the scene where Fisher has to escape from the water tank or face being eaten by piranhas, Fisher’s chain actually got stuck. However, everyone around her just thought she was acting really well and didn’t believe that she was really drowning. She escaped in the nick of time.
Number Two: Margaret Hamilton – The Wizard of Oz.
In one of the scenes where the Wicked Witch of the West disappears into a cloud of smoke, she caught on fire thanks to the fact that her makeup contained petroleum and an errant spark caught her. Hamilton had to be hospitalized for third-degree burns as a result.
Number One: Sylvester Stallone – Rocky IV.
In the scene where Stallone if finally knocked down, Stallone asked his opponent to actually hit him as hard as possible. Well, he got what he asked for and ended up having to go to the hospital. He was in the ICU for eight days.