Filming practical stunts for high-octane horror films always carries genuine danger, but director Zach Cregger revealed that one miscalculated drop on the set of Resident Evil nearly cost lead actor Austin Abrams his life.
Zach Cregger Details Near-Death Experience For Austin Abrams
Breaking down scenes from his directorial work for Vanity Fair, the filmmaker revisited a massive, snow-covered street sequence designed to emulate the chaotic momentum of Capcom’s iconic survival-horror franchise. Rather than leaning entirely on CGI, Cregger’s production rigged multiple cranes with 150-pound bags of blood to simulate infected bodies plummeting from rooftops in real time while Abrams sprinted underneath.
The technical margin for error was razor-thin. Abrams had to run at an exact, rehearsed sprint speed with a crane-mounted camera tracking right behind him on a moving chase vehicle. If the actor tripped, the vehicle risked running him down; if he veered off course, he risked taking the full impact of the falling weights.
During one high-stakes run, the timing slipped.
“Here is where Austin almost died,” Cregger admitted, pointing to the footage. “One of the bodies dropped too early. It was supposed to land behind him, but instead it landed right next to him. That is too close for comfort, man. Like, if he had been off course and been there, it would have caved him in. And that would have been a wrap on Austi baby.”
Despite the terrifying close call, the take remained in the final film.
“That was a really scary moment, but it looked great and it’s in the movie, so you know,” Cregger added with a laugh, praising Abrams’ composure during an intense three-day shoot that relied on practical danger to capture raw, authentic panic.
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