Ryan Reynolds had done something of a herculean task when he worked to bring his dream of a solo movie for the Marvel Comics character Deadpool on 20Th Century Fox to fruition. The film premiered in February of last year and surprised critics and audiences with its power at the box office, all despite the limitation on its viewing age due to its cinema R-rating. Now Reynolds is marshaling the production forces at Fox to shoot the promised bigger and wackier sequel, “Deadpool 2.” However, the filming of a superhero action flick is not devoid of risks and dangers, and one stunt performer had learned this the fatal way, causing a momentary halt to the movie’s shooting schedule.
Stunt gone wrong
Production of “Deadpool 2” by Fox kicked up again this Wednesday, August 16, after a brief halt in the wake of the death of a female stunt motorcycle rider while filming an action sequence. The fatality was Joi “SJ” Harris, 40, a native of Brooklyn and one of the first African-American pro motorcycle road racer. She had been brought in as the stunt performer for actress Zazie Beetz, who is portraying Domino, new ally (sort of) to main character Wade Wilson/Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds).
According to eyewitness accounts, Harris was performing a motorcycle stunt where she must ride down a flight of steps at the outdoor Vancouver set for “Deadpool 2.” She was supposed to stop her bike upon reaching ground level, but an error caused her to speed across the street and killed in the resultant crash.
Reynolds and co-star Josh Brolin have offered their condolences for Harris’ death, and shooting was halted for about 48 hours. Before it resumed, Reynolds then led the actors and film crew in a moment of silence for their late co-worker.
Trend of accidents
20th Century Fox also released their own official statement regarding the death of SJ Harris, expressing their sorrow over the accident that occurred at the “Deadpool 2” set.
“Our hearts and prayers are with the family, friends, and colleagues of our crew member during this difficult time,” the statement concluded. Ryan Reynolds also sent a tweet remarking on the “devastation” felt by the production over the accident, while determined to push through with filming to meet the 2018 release date.
The incident while filming “Deadpool 2” is one of a spate of high-profile production accidents that have been happening on movie and TV sets recently. Last month a stuntman was injured filming a scene from the AMC series “The Walking Dead.” Tom Cruise himself broke his right ankle on the set of the sixth “Mission: Impossible” film this week.
