FRIDAY, August 18, 2017
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Deadpool 2 accident rarity in industry: Stunt pros VICTORIA AHEARN
THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO — Monday’s deadly crash on the set of Deadpool 2 in Vancouver was a rarity in an industry that takes extreme precautions to ensure safety, say stunt professionals, who nevertheless accept there is always an element of risk involved. “Most of us know each other and everybody was shocked because this stuff just doesn’t really happen, in Canada, anyway,’’ said Neven Pajkic, a 39-yearold Toronto-based stunt performer whose credits include Guillermo del Toro’s upcoming film The Shape of Water and the TV series The Handmaid’s Tale. “It just doesn’t happen and it’s heartbreaking.” Joi Harris, a 40-yearold female stunt driver from New York, died after her motorcycle crashed into a window of a building.
Does your
Today, we tragically lost a member of “our crew while filming Deadpool.
We’re heartbroken, shocked and devastated, but we recognize nothing can come close to the grief and inexplicable pain her family and loved ones must feel in this moment. My heart pours out to them — along with each and every person she touched in this world.
”
— RYAN REYNOLDS, in a statement on Twitter
Details have not emerged as to exactly what happened, but some witnesses said she appeared to lose control of the vehicle. The incident came about a month after the death of a stuntman on the set of The Walking Dead. “It is a rarity but the possibility exists that it can happen,’’ said Rick Forsayeth, a Toronto-based stunt co-ordinator, noting in his 35 years in the industry — working on films including X-Men, Resident Evil: Extinction
and AVP: Alien vs. Predator — there’s never been a fatality on set. Adam WinloveSmith, a 34-year-old stunt performer from Toronto whose credits include the upcoming Code 8 film starring Stephen Amell and Robbie Amell, agrees catastrophic accidents “are super rare” but professionals accept there are risks. “It is risky but everybody knows that going into the industry, so you have to have that personality to deal with that
risk that may occur.’’ Stunt performers hail from various backgrounds, including martial arts, boxing, motorsports, mountain climbing, gymnastics, circus arts and swordfighting. Pajkic got into the industry after being a professional boxer and has since taken various industry certification courses, including one for rappelling. Meanwhile, WinloveSmith said he was trained in extreme sports growing up,
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been seriously injured on set, or felt unsafe. “Most of my friends who are stunt performers tend to get injured when they’re doing their own training,’’ WinloveSmith said. “There’s only a few people I’ve known that have actually gotten hurt on set but it hasn’t been to the extent of career-ending. “You get bumps and bruises, but that comes with the territory.’’ Pajkic said the one time he felt uncomfortable with a stunt he was asked to do, the stunt co-ordinator understood and found someone more specialized to do it. Pajkic was still paid for that day’s work. “They’re never willing to take risks with lives,’’ he said. “When there’s a highspeed chase, there’s always a risk. When there’s a stair fall, there’s always a risk “We take precautions. . . . This is very
including freestyle skiing, martial arts, knife fighting and acrobatics. Both are members of Canada’s performers’ union and said stunt coordinators research the background of all talent in order to ensure they have the proper skills. “Nobody’s going to pick you to do a stunt if you don’t have sufficient training,’’ Pajkic said. “You can’t just go out there and pretend you’re a stunt guy. That doesn’t happen, ever.’’ Pajkic can’t speak for B.C.’s industry but said in Ontario and Quebec, where he’s worked, “it’s an utmost controlled and safety-oriented place.” “I had more bumps and bruises in my boxing career,’’ he said. “You’ve got to understand, there are people who’ve done stunts for 40 years in this city. You don’t do something for 40 years if it’s that dangerous.” Both he and WinloveSmith said they’ve never
extensive training to get into the industry. But you get killed walking a doggie nowadays, a car runs you over. . . . “You can only control so much. There is obviously an X-factor with our industry that’s a little bit higher.’’ Safety precautions vary according to the stunt being performed. When a scene involves rappelling, the cables and wires used to rehearse are switched out with new ones for the day of shooting, said Forsayeth. If a scene involves a car crash or chase, they may use fuel cells, which bypass the gas tank and contain just enough fuel for the scene in order to avoid explosions. Such a scene may also involve roll cages and safety bars. Stunt scenes are often extensively rehearsed at a different site and then again once more on the site of production before cameras start rolling.
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