Jonathan Goodwin was seriously injured while rehearsing a stunt Thursday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton for the NBC reality competition show “America’s Got Talent: Extreme.”
According to TMZ, which broke the story, Goodwin was doing a Houdini-like escape trick. He was hanging 70 feet in the air in a straightjacket from a wire. Once out of the straightjacket, he was supposed to avoid two suspended cars swinging back and forth, landing on an air mattress.
But the stunt went awry. While falling, the two vehicles hit each other and exploded into a ball of fire while he got wedged between them, TMZ said. He fell and hit his head, the website said.
NBC confirmed that the accident happened and released a statement: “During a rehearsal last evening for ‘America’s Got Talent: Extreme,’ an accident occurred in which escape artist Jonathan Goodwin was injured while performing his act. He was responsive and was immediately taken to the hospital where he is continuing to receive medical care. Our thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family as we await further updates on his condition.”
The show, which set up a big outdoor stage in a parking lot outside the speedway and uses spots all over the property for stunts, began shooting Sept. 27. It suspended production Friday as a result of the accident Thursday.
“AGT: Extreme” is an eight-episode spinoff of the original summer show focused exclusively on acts that would be deemed dangerous, including circus acts, skateboards, race cars and motorbikes. The prize is $500,000.
The show, set to debut on NBC in 2022, features executive producer Simon Cowell as a judge along with WWE wrestler Nikki Bella and professional motorsports competitor Travis Pastrana. Terry Crews hosts both “AGT” and this show.
Goodwin, a 41-year-old British escape artist, competed last year on the regular “AGT” and made the semifinals.
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