Actress Taylor Hickson sues filmmakers over disfiguring on-set accident

Canadian actress Taylor Hickson is suing the producers of indie horror movie Ghostland, following an horrific on-set accident which left her disfigured.

Hickson, who has also starred in movies like Deadpool, suffered extensive facial injuries while shooting a scene on the movie in Winnipeg in 2016.

During the scene, which has been described as ’emotionally charged’, Hickson was required to beat her fists against a door with a glass panel in it.

However, the glass pane smashed, cutting the left side of her face.

“In the course of shooting the scene, the director [Pascal Laugier], consistently told [Hickson] to pound harder on the glass with her fists,” reads the suit.

“At one point during the filming of the scene, and after being asked to increase the strength with which [she] pounded on the glass, [she] asked one of the producers and the director if it was safe to do so. That producer and the director both replied in the affirmative.

“The glass shattered, causing [her] head and upper body to fall through the door and shards of glass. As a result of the incident, [she] badly cut the left side of her face.”

Hickson was rushed to hospital following the accident, where she received 70 stitches.

“She has since undergone treatment including laser treatment and silicone treatment, but over one year post-incident, has been left with permanent scarring on the left side of her face,” the suit continues.

“It is unknown at this time if any further treatment, including plastic surgery, would reduce the visual appearance of the injury.”

Speaking to Deadline, Hickson said: “The crafts services lady held my face together with napkins in her hands.

“She went through so many napkins, there was so much blood.”

Pictures immediately following the accident appear on Deadline, showing the graphic nature of Hickson’s wounds.

In an unfortunate twist, the movie’s poster features a girl whose face is cracked and disfigured.

Following the accident, which happened just days after her 19th birthday, Hickson has continued to suffer the after effects, she says.

“It’s been mass amounts of insecurity, conflicted, confused, hurt, angry, and sad that this was my last day on set and no precautions were taken.”

Hickson says that she was busy with acting work up until the accident, but has lost considerable income in the year it has taken for her to recover from her injuries.

She is claiming that the producers of the movie were negligent, and that she continues to suffer ‘mental distress’ following the accident.

“It is an industry standard within the movie industry that, when shooting a scene such as the scene described herein, either safety glass be used which would, upon shattering, break into pieces which would not result in sharp shards on which an actor could be cut, and/or that a stunt double be used for such a scene. Neither occurred in this case,” the suits reads.

The producers of the movie, Incident Productions, is yet to comment on the suit.

Ghostland has its premiere in Paris later this month.

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