10 Dangerous Movie Scenes You Won’t Believe Didn't Kill Anyone
5. Ben-Hur: The Chariot Races Are Always Dangerous
Ben-Hur has been made as a major epic period piece three times and in all three versions the most memorable scene is the chariot race. Chariot races on the whole were pretty dangerous events when the participants were professional racers.
Substitute the professionals for stunt workers and actors and the danger level really ramps up.
The 1925 Ben-Hur chariot race lead to many horses being injured and subsequently killed and at least one stuntman is thought to have died during filming. It's hard to know for sure: old Hollywood was pretty fierce about covering up any acts of manslaughter.
It's because of this long running legend that many believe that the 1959 Ben-Hur is thought the contain a scene left in the film where a stuntman died. This is untrue but based on a real near-death situation.
During the race stuntman Joe Canutt was thrown out of his chariot. Luckily he only sustained an injury to his chin.
It's still amazing watching the 1959 Ben-Hur and realising the race is all practical effects - they even used dynamite in certain segments to have wheels and axels blown off.
For these reasons the legend of the dead stuntman seems completely believable.