Actors often call each other “brave” for taking edgy roles or doubling down on the doughnuts in their trailers.
That’s not brave. Starring in the “Jackass” movie franchise is as brave as you can get in Hollywood circles.
Johnny Knoxville takes a break from that low-brow, high-impact series for “Action Point,” but the gags remain the same. Once more he’s putting himself in harm’s way to make us laugh.
How did it go this time around?
He says his eye popped out after one tricky routine and wouldn’t stay back in. You can stop wincing now. He’s all right.
Knoxville isn’t the only actor to put personal safety aside for the sake of a feature film. These four actors also suffered for their art … and they came out with some great stories to share.
Jeremy Renner, ‘Tag’
The actor has played Hawkeye in a series of Marvel Comic features. That’s not how he broke both arms, though. That happened on the set of “Tag,” a slapstick comedy based on true events. The actor tumbled from a series of stacked chairs and landed on his arms. Hard.
Sylvester Stallone, ‘Rocky IV’
The ageless tough guy brought Rocky Balboa back for 2016’s “Creed,” but the actor almost got stopped during the fourth film in the saga. Stallone asked co-star Dolph Lundgren to “go for it” — try and knock the actor out for real. Lundgren obliged, hitting him so hard in the chest it caused Stallone’s pericardial sac to swell. He had to spend nine days in intensive care before he was cleared to return to the shoot.
Brendan Fraser, ‘The Mummy’
The affable actor never imagined he’d briefly go to the Great Beyond while shooting the first film in this franchise. It technically happened for 18 seconds, he says. The sequence called for him to be hung from a noose, but naturally, he stood on a plank for the production’s purposes. One minute he’s making sure he has enough air in his lungs for the scene, the next he’s waking up after an unexpected “nap.”
Margaret Hamilton, ‘The Wizard of Oz’
The Wicked Witch of the West got what was coming to her in the classic family film. Only the actress who brought her to life suffered on the film’s set, too. Hamilton endured second-degree burns and needed a six-week hiatus after her copper face makeup caught fire during one special effect sequence that went awry. Even the star’s stunt double, Betty Danko, got impacted by the shoot. The double suffered leg scars after a pipe exploded from under her.
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