Jason Statham isn’t afraid of getting his hands dirty, as the star is known for throwing himself into his roles, taking on many of the death defying stunts himself. This nearly backfired in Expendables 3 though, when his car plunged into the sea
Jason nearly died during the filming of Expendables 3
There are few muscle-bound action stars left in Hollywood, with British actor Jason Statham being one of the final few.
He joined the cast of Expendables, a franchise which celebrates the action heroes of old, and in the third instalment it almost took his life.
Many stars choose to leave the dangerous work to the stuntmen, but Jason likes to do it himself.
Now celebrating his 55th birthday; before his days in the Hollywood limelight, he was a professional diver, with those skills coming back to help him years later.
Tragedy befalls film sets far too often and thankfully Jason managed to escape a fate that one his co-star Sylvester Stallone said few would have made it out of.
What happened on the set of Expendables 3?
Jason in Expendables 3 (Image:
PA)
During a relatively normal day on set, Jason found himself making a life or death decision.
He had to leap out of a truck he was driving that then plunged 60ft into the sea.
If he was any slower in his decision, the results could have been catastrophic.
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Sylvester Stallone recalled: “He faced death. He was test-driving a three-ton truck and the brakes run out.
Sylvester Stallone recalled the near-death experiences of Jason Statham (Image:
Getty)
“It went down 60ft into the Black Sea and became impaled. Luckily we had taken the doors off before.
“If anyone else had been in that truck we would have been dead because we were all wearing heavy boots and gun belts.
“We would have drowned. But because Jason is an Olympic-quality diver he got out of it.”
What did Jason Statham say about the event?
Jason also recalled the moment in vivid detail, something he can thankfully now joke about.
He said: “I ended up almost dead at the bottom of the Black Sea — the brakes failed on a truck I was driving.
“It was a hideous thing. I was scrambling for my life stuck in the mud at the bottom, didn’t know which way was up or down.
“I barely f**king made it to the surface. I’ve been scuba diving and freediving before, but this was touch and go whether I was going to make it.”
His other co-stars, such as Terry Crews were all “freaking out,” but relief swept through the set when it was clear Jason was okay.
Jason can at least look back on it with humour, as he joked: “Obviously some delight from some, then others going ‘Oh f**k, he lived’. They shall remain nameless.
“No, I’m only joking.”
