The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Recent visits to movie sets confirm that safety is a primary concern,
Filming involves various risks to actors, extras, crew.
We’ve covered the film industry since 2008, when the Legislature passed the industry-friendly tax policies that have lured so many projects here. During visits to numerous filming sites, both on sound stages and on location, and interviews with people who have spent time on them over the years, the topic of safety has come up regularly.
It’s almost always a positive conversation.
“The opportunity of working on these long, elaborate chase elements is fun,” actor Jon Hamm said enthusiastically during an interview about “Baby Driver,” which was filmed in and set in Atlanta. “There are so many moving parts, it can be dangerous.”
But he worked on the action film with eager confidence, knowing each scene had been carefully set up, with safety top of mind. State and local entities shut down four highways and 40 surface streets throughout the filming to ensure a safe environment.
“Any time you’re in a car going 80 miles per hour going sideways, it’s fun,” Hamm said.
Missy Bain’s twins played babies in the 2011 Jason Bateman-Ryan Reynolds buddy comedy “The Change-Up,” and she was impressed with the production’s commitment to safety. Although Bateman’s character ineptly juggled the twins on camera, a special hidden harness kept them securely strapped in during the comic bits.
“They were so great about safety,” she told us at the time. “There were scenes in the bathtub and in the sink. They had us come test the water temperature. They thought of everything.”
We visited the set of “Parental Guidance,” a 2012 family comedy with Billy Crystal, Bette Midler, Marisa Tomei and Tom Everett Scott, the day of a Piedmont Park shoot featuring skateboarding pro Tony Hawk. Crews constructed a professional half-pipe for a scene involving young actors, and members of the crew watched the kids like, pardon the pun, proverbial hawks.
We watched Tom Holland film a scene for the recently released “Spider-Man: Homecoming” that involved him running down a downtown Atlanta alley while jostling out of his street clothes. Anthony Mackie sprinted across a roof a few blocks away for a scene in last year’s “Captain America: Civil War.” No issues. The “Captain America” scene filmed on a blazing hot day, and after every “cut!” the extras who were congregated for crowd scenes were urged to seek respite in the shade. At one point, Chris Evans’ stunt double handed out bottled water to keep everyone properly hydrated.
On the other hand, we’ve also heard, always off the record, as sources fear professional retribution, allegations of unsafe practices on set.
“Our safety and comfort are rarely a priority,” a background artist said in an email last week, after The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s story on set safety appeared online. “To them, we are props that eat.”
An extra who’s worked on “The Walking Dead” recalls feeling ill at ease.
“I had to be behind this big gate,” he recalled of a “Woodbury” scene filmed during Season 3. “The Governor (played by David Morrissey) was going to come flying through. He’s in a car. They’d go ‘Gate!’ and we had to open the gate as fast as we could. It was sort of like opening a drawbridge. I kept thinking: ‘I’m a little nervous. Am I going to be hit?’ There were times that I felt, ‘I don’t feel comfortable on this thing.’ “
The extra pushed back while working on a scene for 2012’s “The Three Stooges.”
“They wanted us up on this slanted roof and I said, ‘I’m not comfortable doing this.’ They said, ‘fine,’ ” he said. 20th Century Fox Studios was fined for several issues pertaining to that movie, Occupational Safety and Health Administration records show. Violations involved wiring methods, components, general-use equipment, aerial lifts and head protection. The head protection item was later deleted.
20th Century Fox Studios didn’t respond to a request for comment.