24 years after the release of the iconic movie, The Mummy , lead actor, Brendan Fraser , reveals that he faced a near-death experience on set. Keep reading to discover exclusive details about everything that unfolded behind the scenes that day.
Spill The Beans
On his recent appearance at the Kelly Clarkson show this Tuesday, actor, Brendan Fraser, took the audience back in time to the sets of The Mummy and talked about how he almost died filming a particular scene for the movie.
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The Choking Scene
The actor shared that the life-threatening incident happened while he was filming Rick O’Connell’s, his character in the movie, execution scene.
Sell The Scene
Fraser had a rope around his neck for the scene and was standing on his tiptoes, but the director, Stephen Sommers, wasn’t satisfied with the performance and asked him, “It doesn’t really look like you’re choking. Can you sell it?’”
Going Down
For the next take, the man handling the rope pulled it slightly higher than the last time, and Fraser realized, “I was stuck on my toes — I had nowhere to go but down.”
A Near-Death Experience
Fraser described that he had lost all control, “The next thing I knew, my elbow was in my ear, the world was sideways, and there was gravel in my teeth, and everyone was really quiet.”
Back To Life
The 54-year-old actor expressed that the only thing he heard as he regained consciousness was his name being called out by the stunt director.
Welcome To The Club
When the stunt director had managed to wake him up, the crew cheerfully said, “Congratulations, you’re in the club! The same thing happened to Mel Gibson on ‘Braveheart.”
Zoned Out
The actor laughed while recalling that day and revealed that he was still zoned out when he replied, “Thanks, I think?! I wanna go home!”
The Braveheart Incident
In 2014, Gibson shared his close call with death in a scene of Braveheart where he was riding a horse that was supposed to do a rear-up thing. However, the problem was that the horse would sometimes fall backward, and it would be really dangerous if the rider fell before him.
And Action!
When the camera started rolling, his biggest nightmare came true, but Gibson’s stunt double reached him just in time to pull him away before the horse fell on him.
Old News
Brendan had previously revealed his The Mummy incident in 2019, telling Entertainment Weekly that he wasn’t “choked out,” but the experience was still rather “scary.”
Passing The Blame
The movie’s director, Stephen Sommers, explained that Fraser was the one to “blame” for that incident.
Recollection Of The Past
The filmmaker recalled, “He tightens the noose, and then, as we’re about to get the shot, he’s trying to make it look like it’s really strangling him.”
A Health Emergency
He even revealed that Fraser had damaged the carotid artery that got him knocked out.
Sarcasm In The Lines
Fraser replied sarcastically to Sommers, saying, “Technically, yes, it was my fault that I was following directions from my director to sell it.”
A Top Hit
The Mummy trilogy remains some of Fraser’s best works to this day and helped him land several other notable projects.
Potential For A Comeback?
Following the success of the series, Fraser is often asked about the possibility of a reboot, to which he replied, “it’s kinda been an open-ended question for some time now. I’m not opposed to it.”
Sold Out Theatrical
In January, The Mummy once again made headlines as its lead actor made a guest appearance at the theatrical screening of the movie in London.
The Achievements Continue
Fraser recently bagged an Academy Awards nomination for Best Actor for his role in The Whale and has received the SAG and Critics Choice Awards for the same role.
