10 Directors Who Nearly Killed Their Actors

9. Gerard Butler Almost Drowned Making A Movie Nobody Has Heard Of

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DRxMXw8J9M There's a reason you probably haven't heard of Curtis Hanson and Michael Apted's latest film Chasing Mavericks, and that's because it's not very good, failing to secure proper UK distribution and entering a limited release in the US (where it opened to a critical drubbing). It's a shame, though, because the film nearly claimed the life of its lead actor, Gerard Butler, who clearly felt like he was making something worthy, even if the most publicity the film ever got was surrounding this unfortunate accident. Butler, an amateur surfer, was out shooting scenes in the ocean when he got into trouble and wiped out, getting caught in the current and being unable to surface for around a minute due to another wave crashing upon him thereafter. Butler wound up hospitalised, and in recovery became addicted to painkillers, so ended up checking himself into rehab for three weeks. It stands to reason that a film about surfing is going to carry certain risks, but were there not really safer ways to film the scene? Perhaps using a pro for the money shots rather than Butler? Or some visual effects (lame, I know)? Throwing the guy, an amateur no less, head long into a violent wave system seems awfully risky, and look what happened.