Over the years, we have been told that the film industry is full of glamor and stars. However, this is not always the case, as everything has a shady side where accidents often happen that end the lives of those who work behind many movies. And without a doubt, one of the most famous cases is that of Brandon Lee, a young actor who wanted to shine in Hollywood but unfortunately went down in history for a very sad event.
Without a doubt, this case went around the world for a lot of reasons. The first was Lee’s sudden death at age 28, plus years later we learned that things could have been very different for him if the production had foreseen the impending accident. This caused a huge legend and theories to grow around Brandon as to why he probably died, but this time we will not go with the rumors, but with the facts.
A brief look at Brandon Lee’s career
Brandon Lee was born on February 1, 1965 in Oakland, California. No doubt many will remember him as the son of the legend of martial arts cinema, the great Bruce Lee. However, just like his father, he wanted to follow in his footsteps and appear in movies, which is why he left school to go to Los Angeles to look for an opportunity , like any young man who wants to succeed in the film industry and without using his last name as an influence that would probably
It was until 1985 when he had his first role in the movie Crime Killer , where he played a gangster. A year later he finally got an important character, when he gave life to Brandon Ma in the film Legacy of Rage, from there he managed to appear in other productions such as Laser Mission, Showdown in Little Tokyo and Rapid Fire. But after so much time in front of the cameras and almost a decade later, the project that would catapult him to fame and the last of his career would arrive. Bruce Lee with his mother and Brandon.
‘The Crow’ and the accident that killed him
In 1993, Brandon Lee was cast as the lead in The Crow , a film adaptation based on the 1989 comic book series of the same name created by James O’Barr. Of course, the young actor was very excited about the idea of ​​playing the main character of this film, Eric Draven , which is why during all that time he prepared himself, read the comics and was even so committed that he offered to do all the risk scenes.
However, this desire to do things perfectly and get involved in everything that had to do with his role would unknowingly put him in an extremely dangerous situation. On March 31, 1993, Brandon walked on set to film the scene where Draven recalls being shot by Funboy (played by actor Michael Massee). Before filming this part, they shot a close-up of the Smith & Wesson Magnum revolver used by that character, showing it loaded.
A brief explanation of the operation of the weapon that killed Brandon
Normally for these shots, fake cartridges are used, without gunpowder or primer. However, due to lack of budget, in the production of The Crow they acquired real bullets from which the powder was removed, but not the primer . At some point someone pulled the trigger to test it, although they did not count on the fact that the firing pin fired the primer and the bullet made a short trip and this caused something very serious: the bullet stuck inside the barrel .
However, due to lack of time and budget – because they presumably fired the master gunsmith, who was in charge of preparing the pistol for the scene – no one checked the revolver to make sure everything was in order. They simply removed the real bullets with blanks and when actor Michael Massee pulled the trigger, the powder in the blank detonated with enough force to push the bullet that had gotten stuck in the barrel , straight into the abdomen by Brandon Lee.
Brandon Lee lost his life and his legacy began
Por el impacto, Brandon cayó al suelo y herido mortalmente. Como era de esperarse, al darse cuenta de que no se levantaba, el equipo de The Crow lo llevó rápidamente al hospital New Hanover Regional Medical Center, en Wilmington, Carolina del Norte. AhÃ, los doctores intentaron salvarle la vida pero lamentablemente a la 1:03 de la tarde del mismo 31 de marzo, a 17 dÃas de su boda y a 8 de terminar el rodaje, los médicos confirmaron que el joven actor habÃa fallecido a los 28 años.
Brandon Lee was buried next to his father in Lake View Cemetery on Capitol Hill, Seattle, Washington. However, despite the fact that he left the film halfway, everyone involved in the production decided to continue and finish filming. Finally , on May 11, 1994, this film was released as a tribute to this young actor who lost his life due to an accident, which could probably have been foreseen if they had had the help of a professional in arms.
The actor’s family wanted to do justice
Footage of the fatal take in which Brandon died was used as evidence in the investigation , and was later personally burned by director Alex Proyas. Currently, the circumstances of the actor’s death continue to be part of theories and legends such as the Lee curse –which we may tell you about in another installment–, but for several years the medical documents certifying his death and the causes of death have been made public same .