A cellphone video of the accident on the set of the Eddie Murphy film “The Pickup” reveals that an SUV and truck can be seen flipping over after veering off road.
The New York Times obtained the footage and shared it Wednesday after news broke that the accident on the set of the Amazon MGM Studios film hospitalized two people and injured several others. The New York Times now says at least half a dozen people who were inside the two cars were taken to the hospital. One remains hospitalized Wednesday after sustaining a back injury.
In the video (via NYT), you can see an armored truck pulling up alongside an SUV and then swerving into it, leading the cars to drive off the road and into grass. But the armored truck then rolls on top of the SUV, with both vehicles fully flipping before landing upright. The video concludes with a person’s body hanging limply out of the armored truck door.
While it’s unclear the exact cause of the accident, be it human error or vehicle malfunction, a source close to the production told IndieWire that the truck in the video was meant to collide with the SUV as part of the stunt sequence in the film. The SUV was supposed to then veer behind the armored truck, but the sequence did not go as planned.
OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has opened an investigation into the accident, which took place April 20 outside Atlanta.
“On April 20, an accident occurred on the set of ‘The Pickup’ during a rehearsed second unit action sequence. Unfortunately, the sequence did not go as planned and several members of the crew were injured as a result,” a spokesperson for Amazon MGM Studios said in a statement Tuesday. “We are still in the process of gathering facts on what happened and why, but first and foremost our thoughts are with those who are recovering. The well-being of the entire crew and cast is our first priority, and we will continue to insist on the highest industry standards of safety while filming. All safety precautions were reviewed prior to and monitored during the shoot.”
Amazon MGM Studios had no additional comment today.
The crash was described to the AP yesterday as a “freak accident” with all safety procedures being followed, and that all injured crew members were expected to make a full recovery.
The stars of “The Pickup,” including Eddie Murphy, Keke Palmer, and Pete Davidson, were not on set at the time of the accident. The sequence was being filmed by the second unit, which shoots portions of the film not involving principal actors.
Tim Story is directing “The Pickup,” which also stars Andrew Dice Clay, Eva Longoria, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Jack Kesy, and Marshawn Lynch. Production is not expected to be delayed as a result of the accident.
Watch the video via The New York Times.
