The Expendables franchise is one of the biggest action series of recent years and, with Jason Statham (Transporter), Sylvester Stallone (Rocky), Arnold Schwarzenegger (Terminator) and Co., brings together the A-list of actors who currently represent the genre has to offer. However, the franchise was almost rocked by a real tragedy when filming The Expendables 3 Jason Statham almost died in an accident.
Back in 2013, co-star Terry Crews (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) spoke to Jay Leno about the incredible event on the Expendables 3 set, in which Jason Statham accidentally fell into the Black Sea in a stunt truck. The Transporter star finally spoke out on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon reported his near-death experience – for which Sylvester Stallone only had a joking remark.
Jason Statham saved himself from the depths of the Black Sea at the last second
While filming The Expendables 3 in Bulgaria, Jason Statham was supposed to drive a truck along the Black Sea shore. Shortly before the first take, the actor did a test drive and drove towards the concrete barrier towards the water. When he tried to apply the brakes, they didn’t work and the truck just kept driving. Statham not only rammed two cameramen, but also landed with the truck in the middle of the Black Sea – where he began to sink lower and lower.
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Luckily, the actor’s reflexes kicked in quickly. Despite increasing water pressure and a costume weighing kilos, he managed to free himself through the window of the driver’s cab and finally swim to the surface through the dark sea water. When he arrived back on set, the cast and crew were both shocked and relieved – but he received a slightly different greeting from Sylvester Stallone:
In this moment, Jimmy, you realize who your true friends are. So I look around […] and where is Sly? He was still standing on the side of the dock with his iPhone and said ‘Hey Jason, do you need a towel?‘Sylvester Stallone had nothing but respect for Jason Statham
However, at the premiere of The Expendables 3 in London, Sylvester Stallone revealed to The Mirror how impressed he was with his co-star for the heroic fight for survival:
He has faced death […]. He is 60 feet [umgerechnet ca. 18,3 Meter] fell into the Black Sea. Luckily we had removed the doors beforehand. If anyone else had been in that truck, we would have died along with our heavy boots and belts. We would all have drowned. But because Jason has Olympic diving skills, he made it out of there.
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In fact, Jason Statham competed for England as a diver at the Commonwealth Games in New Zealand in 1990 before making his breakthrough as an actor. The intensive diving training years later, it benefited Statham – and even saved his life.