'Deadpool' Star Taylor Hickson Sues 'Ghostland' Producers Over Disfiguring Facial Injury
Movie

The Canadian actress sues the movie producers for negligence during the filming that made the left side of her face need 70 stitches.

AceShowbiz - Taylor Hickson filed a lawsuit against Incident Production Inc. on Thursday, March 1. The lawsuit stemmed from an accident on the set of "Ghostland", during which the actress was asked to shoot a dangerous scene that caused her head and upper body to fall through the door and shards of glass. The actress claimed that the producers ignored the movie industry standard.

According to the suit obtained by Deadline, she was required to shoot an emotionally charged scene where her character was required to pound with her fist on the pane of glass in a door with her face near or against the glass in the door on December 15, 2016.

The claim continued that the director consistently told her to pound the glass harder with her fists. After being asked to increase the strength to pound the glass, Taylor asked one of the producers and the director if it was safe to do so and both producers and director replied in the affirmative.

After being assured that pounding hard on the glass was safe, Taylor did as instructed. Then, the glass shattered, causing her head and upper body to fall through the door and shards of glass. As the result, the actress badly cut the left side of her face. She was rushed to hospital and received approximately 70 stitches. She has since undergone treatment including laser treatment and silicone treatment. However, over one year post-incident, the injury left permanent scarring on the left side of her face.

Taylor also stated in the suit that when shooting a dangerous scene such as the scene described before, either safety glass should be used which would, upon shattering, break into pieces which would not result in sharp shards on which an actor could be cut and/or that a stunt double should be used for such a scene, according to a movie industry standard. However, neither occurred in the case.

Canada's actors union has reacted to this issue. "We have an ongoing grievance against the production because of the incident," said Rob Macklin, branch representative ACTRA Manitoba, the Canadian actors union. "When she performed in that scene, she should have been under a risk performance contract, she should have had an option to have a stunt performer in her place, and there should have been a stunt coordinator present. But there was no stunt coordinator present."

Rob added, "There is a collective-bargaining agreement that prescribes what should have been in place when dangerous things are being done. The producers should have had more safety measures in place to make sure the scene was done safely."

Taylor was said to be a "busy, up and coming actor" before the accident. Now, she is struggling to find work as an actor and states that such struggle is due to her injury. She states that she has and will continue to suffer future financial losses and in an amount to be proven at or before trial.

She said that she sustained beyond the physical injury. "It's been mass amounts of insecurity, conflicted, confused, hurt, angry, and sad that this was my last day on set and no precautions were taken."

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