Killed Deadpool 2 stuntwoman 'overpromoted because she was the right race and gender'
Stunt performers who worked on ‘Deadpool 2’ have said that they warned producers of the movie that newcomer Joi ‘SJ’ Harris, who died in a motorcycle accident on set, was not up to the job.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, several people who worked on the movie have come forward saying that they had voiced concerns, but were ignored.
There are also suggestions that producers pressured their stunt coordinators to use Harris because she was African-American, and a believable stand-in for Zazie Beetz, the actress playing the character of Domino, despite her lack of experience.
One stunt performer, who was training Harris but eventually left the set saying they wanted nothing more to do with the movie, told THR: “She was improving, but I was watching her and, oh my God, I thought, ‘It’s just a matter of time before she crashes into a wall or runs somebody over.’
“I cringed every time she went out. Like, when is she going to crash? They were warned, yes!”
Harris, 40, who was a professional road racer, had never worked as a stunt performer before. ‘Deadpool 2’ was to be her first movie.
But she was killed when she lost control of her Ducati 939 Hyperstrada, hit a curb and was thrown from the motorcycle through a plate-glass window on the Vancouver set.
She was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident, according to reports.
“The producers put pressure to have somebody of the same sex and ethnicity in a position she wasn’t qualified to be in,” said Conrad Palmisano, a veteran stunt coordinator who has spoken to ‘several people’ in the stunt business who were on set that day.
“The stunt coordinators caved to the pressure. All the stunt people could do was take it to their higher-ups. They’re going to follow their chain of command.”
Production on the movie restarted just days after the accident.
Other than condolences made at the time of the accident, so far both Fox and director David Leitch, who was himself a prolific stuntman and stunt coordinator before making his debut behind the camera on ‘John Wick’, have not commented further.
The movie remains on track for release in June next year.
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