Netflix Suspends Production on Series After 2 Actors Die in Van Crash
Production on Netflix's upcoming series The Chosen One has officially been suspended after a crash in Mexico left two actors dead and six others injured. Deadline confirmed over the weekend that Redrum, the company running the filming, temporarily paused production on the series following the tragedy. It is unclear when production will resume. Netflix has not publicly commented on the incident at this time.
The upcoming series is based on the comic book series by Mark Millar and Peter Gross. Per Netflix's official description, in The Chosen One, "a 12-year-old boy learns he's the returned Jesus Christ, destined to save humankind." It's unrelated to another show featured on streaming service with the same name. Raymundo Garduño Cruz and Juan Francisco González Aguilar, attached to the series as cast members, were killed on Thursday as they were in transit from Santa Rosalía to the local airport.
According to reports, the van flipped after running off the road in a desert area near Mulege on the Baja California Sur peninsula. The crew had apparently been working in the nearby Santa Rosalia area at the time. Both Garduno Cruz and González Aguilar, who were not immediately identified, were killed in the crash. The six injured and currently unnamed production members include two other actors and four members of the crew. They are all said to be in stable condition.
Speaking with The Daily Beast, friends of the victims said there had been concern with the transportation prior to the crash, with several actors having reportedly issued complaints regarding poor transportation and logistics. Liliana Conlisk Gallegos, who said she was a friend of González Aguilar, said it "fills me with rage that there are reports of abuse and exploitation being shared by people involved with the production. I would like to demand that this is further investigated. If nothing wrong was going on, then there shouldn't be an issue with providing the information." On Twitter, meanwhile, actor and director Fernando Bonilla said it is "imperative that the production report how many hours of rest the driver who lost control of the truck had."
In a statement, SAG-AFTRA confirmed they are looking into the accident. A spokesperson confirmed, "SAG-AFTRA has been in contact with Netflix and with the Mexican actors union ANDA about this incident and we are investigating the circumstances with local production. On set safety is always our top priority. We will continue to take all necessary steps to ensure that our members and others are safe in their workplace."