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The widow of a New Zealand stunt technician killed on the set of the latest Batman film, has called on big movie companies to take health and safety more seriously when filming stunts.
Conway Wickliffe was killed while filming scenes the latest Batman movie, The Dark Knight, in September 2007, an English inquest has been told.
The Te Kuiti 41-year-old was leaning out the window of a 4WD, facing backwards filming a test run for blowing up the Batmobile, when the vehicle hit a tree in September last year.
He suffered severe injuries from the impact, and was pronounced dead at the scene near Chertsey, in Surrey.
His widow Derryn (Dee) Chase said a health and safety person should be assigned to every stunt shoot to prevent similar tragedies.
"Warner Brothers are a huge multi-million dollar company - why are they cutting corners?' she said outside the inquest.
"These guys are under pressure because the director will say he wants something and they have to respond as quickly as possible.
"It is the culture of the industry and it needs to change.
"I just want to see the big companies take health and safety seriously in the movie industry.'
Mr Wickliffe left two children, daughter Eden, 4, and son Sabian, 12.
He grew up in Paeroa, and the couple met as teenagers.
Ms Chase told the two-day inquest which has just finished at Woking, Surrey, that he loved his job and loved life, taking part in extreme sports such as snowboarding and parachute jumping.
He had worked on a string of big budget hits, including Batman Begins, Children of Men and the James Bond films Casino Royale and Die Another Day.
Mr Wicklife was leaning out of a car window, facing backwards and filming when the driver failed to negotiate a bend and hit a tree at about 32kmh at the site in Surrey during filming of The Dark Knight.
The jury at Woking Coroners Court returned an accidental death verdict.
Britain's Health and Safety Executive (HSE) may now bring a prosecution over the death.
- NZPA
