20 Disasters That Happened on Film Sets
The real story is BEHIND the camera! Join us as we explore the devastating accidents and tragedies that occurred behind the scenes of famous productions. From deadly helicopter crashes to radioactive film locations, these shocking incidents remind us of the dangers lurking behind movie magic. Which of these on-set disasters surprised you the most? Our countdown includes incidents from “The Crow,” “Twilight Zone: The Movie,” “Rust,” “Deadpool 2,” “The Passion of the Christ,” and more! These heartbreaking events changed lives forever and reshaped safety protocols in Hollywood. Let us know in the comments which on-set disaster you found most shocking.
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#FilmSetAccidents #BrandonLee #TwilightZone #RustShooting #StuntAccidents #MovieProduction #FilmSafety #HollywoodTragedies #OnSetDisasters #FilmHistory #MovieMagic #CinemaHistory
@WatchMojo
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Let us know in the comments which on-set disaster you found most shocking.
For more content like this, click here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmZTDWJGfRq0aXtA0wxp_Q5pl4EgjnS7C&si=4Y7BPsDnPh6FNYFl
@misaeljoelvera6631
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
One story you missed was Guy Norris's stunt in 1981's The Road Warrior aka Mad Max 2. Guy Norris hits a car, flies off his bike and does mid-air flips without the help of wires, blue screen, or computer graphics. What is incredible is it was totally an accident. Norris only broke a femur and continued to work with director George Miller as a stunt coordinator to this day.
@sheilaholmes996
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
PCP? Why would you do that???
@Obeythebeard
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Noteworthy about the accident on the railroad bridge is that supposedly they had been turned down not just once but twice by CSX (the owner of the track). Still, they took the entire crew and the actor up on that bridge. As a train driver it is unfortunately not even surprising. So many "artists" think they are doing something unique when they choose the tracks as their scene. A colleague of mine found a rock band with drums, amps and everything performing on a bridge out in the middle of nowhere. He was already going slowly fortunately but the band could not have known that they would be saved by such a lucky circumstance.
@ROCKONplaceboforever
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
It's so sad they have to have better safety measures 😔 thanks WatchMojo 👏🏽
@MousePad57
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Midnight rider…
@ThomasH-f1e
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
I'm a little surprised you didn't include Brad Pitt's mishap during the filming of "Se7en." During the chase scene, Pitt accidentally put his arm through a car windshield and severed a tendon in his hand. That cast his character wears for the remainder of the movie? That's real; they had to alter the storyline to accommodate it. (And since they generally don't shoot movie scenes in order, they had to get creative with scenes that were filmed AFTER the accident but appear in the movie before the chase scene.)
@Grandizer8989
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Nothing compares to the Silent Film era when Biblical disasters were popular. The sets were enormous but flimsy, and Extras took the dangerous work out of hunger and some drowned during a flood scene.
@CindytheRedScout
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Something about "The Exorcist" being particularly cursed in terms of shooting mishaps?
@Brown87
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
15:53 "Santa Fe, New Mexican" 😂
@KarenRose70
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Harry Potter had a stunt person become paralyzed.
@josh72456
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
I knew about a few.
@stewban007
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Have you ever heard of a stuntman called Martin Grace? He was seriously injured while filming a stunt for the 1983 Bond film ‘Octopussy’. During the filming of train sequence at the Nene Valley Railway near Peterborough, England, Grace (who was Roger Moore’s stunt double and friend) was moving along the outside of a railway carriage while the train was moving at speed. The train went along a section of track that hadn’t been safety checked with Martin Grace still hanging on outside the carriage. He collided with a concrete pillar alongside the track and fractured his pelvis among other injuries. He managed to hang until the driver stopped the train and was rushed to hospital. During his time in hospital, he became very popular with the staff because Roger Moore, who had finished filming in India came to visit. He made a full recovery after the accident and returned to work as Stunt Coordinator for the next Bond Film ‘A View to a Kill.’
@stewban007
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Before Catch 22, John Jordan lost his leg while filming the helicopter battle for the Bond film ‘You Only Live Twice’. After recovering, he went work on ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’.
@cajayson8301
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
What I don't get with "Rust" is why they even have guns on movie sets with actual bullets, especially as the actors are in a labor union. Shouldn't all of them have blanks? Or perhaps they can do the shooting scenes with CGI.
@marcandreyko4251
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Dylan O' Brien's injuries are definitely noticeable, but luckily, he had access to great medical care and an amazing facial surgeon.
@marcandreyko4251
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Jim Caviezel is BATSHIT CRAZY.
@suspectx1138
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
@WatchMojo
My twin brother and I were kids visiting our grandparents when, on the early morning of July 23rd, 1982, just before 4am, our Grandfather received a devastating phone call.
His Huey Helicopter had crashed, with Dorcey Wingo (his pilot) at the controls.
However, the real devastation was when this WWII Veteran (B-17 Bombardier) heard that the crash (his helicopter) had killed 3 people, two of whom were small children.
It was then that he could no longer hold in his emotions. I think a piece of his heart broke at that moment and never healed.
@jamesmoss3424
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
R.I.P. Brandon Lee.
@TheDustinExperience
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Perhaps the most well known one from old Hollywood is Margaret Hamilton being nearly burned alive while filming The Wizard of Oz.
@eugeniapatroncosta920
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Batman: the Dark Knight; Top Gun and of course; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows-part 1 are my favourites.
@vanessastegall
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Rust I don’t think it’ll ever be released because of what happened to Helena Hutchins
@Rosewolf29
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Baldwin got away with murder, and not for the first time.
@JOSH-lw2jv
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
"RAMBO: First Blood, Part II" (1985) had
a freak accident in 1984 during the filming
of one of the film's waterfall explosions
in Acapulco, Mexico, when special effects
man Clifford P. Wenger, Jr. lost his footing
and tragically fell to his death. He was
submerged underwater for more than five
minutes before the crew could retrieve his
body.
The film was dedicated to his memory.
—
"The Right Stuff" (1983) also had a
freak accident of its own when stuntman
and former Green Beret Joseph Svec fell
to his death while performing a parachute
stunt.
He was recreating the 1963 sequence when
Chuck Yeager ejected from a stalled NF-104
and during his freefall, his flight helmet
had caught fire on collided with the ejection
seat's heat exhaust in mid-air.
Sadly, the smoke canister inside Joseph's
helmet (which was to simulate the fire) may
have intoxicated him, causing him to
lose consciousness and he failed to open his
parachute.
—
"Steel" (1979) was another film where a
freak accident occured during the
filming of a scene where George Kennedy's
character fell to his death.
A.J. Bakunas (Kennedy's stunt double)
performed the stunt jump from the
22nd floor of a construction site (he was
attempting to retake the world record
jump that was previously broken by fellow
stuntman Dan Robinson in 1978 for a non-
movie-related publicity stunt) in view
of his father and a crowd of 1,000 people.
Sadly, the stunt airbag for him split on
impact, causing A.J. to get seriously injured,
and he later died the next day.
@Animeguy300
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 pm
Film sets are danger hazard for actors
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