Joe Watts' safety line broke during a staged fight scene for F9: The Fast Saga, sending him flying headfirst and missing the crash mats. He was hurled over the left shoulder of another performer.
A stuntman on the set of the ninth Fast & Furious movie suffered brain damage after falling 25 feet (7 meters) and the producers of the franchise were fined £800,000.
In July 2019, Joe Watts—who also sustained a fractured skull—was doing a stunt at the Warner Brothers studio in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, when the incident occurred.
When Mr. Watts was thrown over the shoulder of another performer during a staged fight scene for F9: The Fast Saga on a balcony, his safety line broke and he fell head first onto the concrete below.
The film's production company, FF9 Pictures, a division of Universal Pictures, was forced to pay £800,000 to the Luton Magistrates' Court after acknowledging health and safety violations.
According to testimony given to the court, Mr. Watts was flung over the right shoulder of another performer during rehearsals; however, this was altered to the left during filming.
On the second take, his safety line, which had been working properly the first time, came loose from his vest and he went to the ground, missing the crash mats.
In between takes, the wire was not examined.
Judge Talwinder Buttar, district judge, criticized the decision to alter the stunt "at the last minute" and stated that Mr. Watts is "fortunate to be alive" when he handed down his sentence.
Despite the routine changing from rehearsals, she continued, it is "astonishing" that the mats were left in their original position.
"No system for double checking that the link had been properly engaged and tightened" was the reason given by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for bringing the prosecution against FF9.
The HSE stated that the business "did not extend the crash matting needed to mitigate the consequences of an unintended fall following changes to the set and the sequence of the stunt" .
Mr. Watts is well-known for his stunt acting, having contributed to movies like Star Wars and Game of Thrones.
"Mr. Watts' injuries were life-changing, and he could have easily been killed," HSE inspector Roxanne Barker stated.
"In stunt work, it is not about preventing a fall but minimising the risk of an injury."