Being a Hollywood star is never a piece of cake. Filming studios are not always about glitz and glamour. Audiences fall for top-notch scenes, such as a hero walking out of an explosion or a stunning motor race. From time to time, acting can be downright dangerous and life-threatening quite a few times.
Unfortunate incidents did happen during the filming of a movie or show. They resulted in the death of actors on the set itself. In addition, many actors struggled with mental problems when trying to portray miserable or psychopathic characters. Some ended up committing suicide.
Time heals all wounds, but each time fans rewatch their favorite flicks starring such actors, tears will be up their eyes. Read about thirteen actors passing away in the middle of movies or shows' production via our list!
#1. Heath Ledger
Source: BOB RIHA JR/WIREIMAGE
On January 22, 2008, Heath Ledger was found dead in his Manhattan apartment from a drug overdose. The Australian actor was in the middle of production for Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. Gilliam brought on Ledger's close friends Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell to step in for Ledger's character in his remaining scenes.
#2. Paul Walker
Source: Jason LaVeris, GettyImages
On November 30th, 2013, Paul Walker left a charity event with his former racing friend Roger Rodas. The two were killed almost instantly when the Porsche Rodas was driving lost control and slammed into a tree. Fast & Furious 7 was still in the middle of filming. Universal Pictures considered indefinitely putting the movie on hold. Eventually, they decided to move forward with a combination of special effects and stunt doubles.
#3. Cory Monteith
Source: GettyImages
He was found dead in his Vancouver, Canada hotel room on July 13, 2013, during the hiatus between the show's 4th and 5th seasons. Authorities stated that the actor died from a lethal combination of heroin and alcohol, but ruled out any foul play. Monteith was 31.
#4. Marilyn Monroe
Source: IMDb
She was in the middle of filming the comedy Something's Got To Give when she was found dead at her Brentwood, CA home on August 5, 1962. Monroe's cause of death was reported as an overdose of barbiturates resulting from a probable suicide.
#5. John Ritter
Source: GettyImages
On September 11, 2003, while filming the ABC sitcom "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter," John Ritter suffered from an aortic dissection caused by a previously undiagnosed congenital heart defect. The actor was rushed to a hospital across the street and died later that evening.
#6. Bela Lugosi
Source: IMDb
Count Dracula, Lugosi died from a heart attack on August 16, 1956, while filming Plan 9 from Outer Space. Director Ed Wood asked his family's chiropractor to take over Lugosi's scenes even though the man didn't look or sound like the actor.
#7. Godfrey Gao
Source: GettyImages
While competing on the Chinese reality TV show "Chase Me", Taiwanese-Canadian model and actor Godfrey Gao collapsed on November 27, 2019. He was rushed to the hospital, where he died about 3 hours after.
#8. Brandon Lee
Source: IMDb
He was killed in a stunt accident while he was filming his movie 'The Crow'. During filming, he was hit on his lower abdomen by a projectile and died later that day at the age of 28.
#9. Bruce Lee
Source: IMDb
He collapsed while dubbing for The Game of Death at Golden Harvest Studio in Hong Kong. Sadly, two months later Lee went to sleep and didn’t wake up, and was later pronounced dead due to abnormal swelling on his brain.
#10. Philip Seymour Hoffman
Source: Ian Gavan/GettyImages
On February 2, 2014, Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in a Manhattan hotel room from a heroin overdose. At the time, the second installment of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay was in production, and Hoffman had a week left of filming. He was 46 years old.
#11. Aaliyah
Source: Kathy Iandoli
After finishing filming The Matrix Reloaded and starting filming The Matrix Revolution, Aaliyah died on August 25, 2001, along with eight other passengers on a small plane that crashed in the Bahamas.
#12. Martha Mansfield
Source: Juliannes Hannes
While she was on stage, a passerby lit a cigarette and accidentally flicked the match into the automobile. The matchstick landed on her costume which was a giant and highly flammable Civil War-era dress and resulted in her death.
#13. Steve Irwin
Source: Discover+
The Australian adventurer and animal advocate, nicknamed The Crocodile Hunter was stung and killed by a stingray on September 4, 2006, while filming 'Ocean’s Deadliest'.
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