Producers Respond to Safety Claims in Crash That Killed Two Actors In Mexico.
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Loading... - Alice Barone
- 05 Jul 2022
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Netflix and the independent production company, Redrum, have both issued statements in the tragic death of two actors killed Thursday in auto accident in in Mulege on the Baja California Sur peninsula.
On June 16, actors Juan Francisco González Aguilar and Raymundo Garduño Cruz were killed when a van they were riding in flipped and crashed.
The actors were in the region filming the Netflix series The Chosen One. According to Netflix, they were being driven from Santa Rosalía to the local airport. Four members of the crew and two other cast members were also injured in the accident and are in stable condition.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic accident that took the lives of Ray Garduño and Juan Francisco González,” Netflix said in a statement to Deadline. “Our thoughts are with their loved ones and with those injured during this unfortunate accident.”
Friends of the actors have raised concerns about the working conditions and transport issues in Mexico. Novelist Rick Zazueta claims in a lengthy June 18 Facebook post that The Chosen One’s cast had “been complaining openly” about logistical and transport issues. Read the full Facebook post here. Zazueta called his post a “plea for justice” for the regional actors who died in the crash.
“This was no ordinary accident, the cast had been complaining openly about the logistical and transport issues faced in this production. The conditions of the van were completely unfit for the purpose of transporting people…But, the show must go on, and the actors get wrapped up in the artform and want to work, and don’t get as many opportunities to work, so they take these gigs with big dreams of NETFLIX and the promise of a small paycheck.”
Redrum, the independent production company that worked on the series, said all safety precautions were followed. “All of us on the production of The Chosen One are shocked by the tragic accident that occurred last Thursday, while on transit from Santa Rosalía, Baja California, to the local airport,” a statement to Deadline reads. “We are deeply saddened by the passing of our colleagues Ray Garduño and Juan Francisco González and are closely supporting all those affected by this unspeakable tragedy. Redrum has been cooperating with local authorities and initial reports and accounts from witnesses indicate that all safety protocols were in place and this was an unfortunate accident.” Read More...
