Stunt performer sues Game of Thrones for £4m after roof jump ended her career
Stars’ body double says zombie scene was unsafe
A STUNTWOMAN is suing the makers of Game of Thrones for £4million, claiming catastrophic injuries she suffered on set ended her career.
Casey Michaels was 28 and had already been a stunt double for stars including Catherine Zeta-Jones and Rene Zellweger when she came to grief plunging from a roof as part of an army ofWight zombies.
Ms Michaels, now 32, had often appeared in the HBO fantasy series before the accident during filming of its Series Eight episode called The Long Night, near Belfast.
She claims an unsafe landing area led to leg injuries that ended her stunt career and hopes of becoming a stunt coordinator or director.
Deny
Her lawyers are suing the hit’s makers Fire and Blood Productions Ltd for more than £4million, mainly made up of lost future earnings. Fire and Blood deny blame and are contesting the claim at the High Court.
Ms Michaels, of Winkfield, Berks, had appeared in dozens of films and TV shows including several Star Wars movies, and had enjoyed high-adrenaline activities such as skydiving.
During a pre-trial hearing, judge Master Richard Davison was told she claims her landing zone was not safe.
Her lawyer Stephen Friday said there is “considerable video” of Ms Michaels and other actors “walking down the roof and jumping or stepping off” but it did “not clearly show the landing area. The state of the landing area is in dispute.
“She was a young stunt performer of considerable potential. We say she had the potential to go on and be a stunt coordinator or a second unit director.” According to entertainment website Variety, Ms Michaels has not worked since but had several operations on a serious fracture dislocation of her left ankle.
Doctors quoted in her claim say she struggles with simple tasks such as shopping, cooking and gardening.
Jonathan Bellamy, for Fire and Blood, told the judge the firm is also contesting the size of the claim since future “employment prospects of the claimant as injured” are disputed.
Giving directions for a 10-day trial, Master Davison said: “This was an unfortunate and certainly colourful accident.”
The Long Night, directed by Miguel Sapochnik, was reportedly filmed in 55 night shoots over 11 weeks in bad weather. It has the longest battle sequence in film history, beating The Lord of the Rings’ 40-minute Battle of Helm’s Deep.