Michael Massee, ‘Crow’ Actor Who Accidentally Shot Brandon Lee RIP

(Variety) Michael Massee, who accidentally fatally shot Brandon Lee on the set of their 1994 film “The Crow,” in which he played Funboy, has died, his agent confirmed to Variety. He was 61.

Massee fired the improperly prepared prop gun that killed Lee on the set of “The Crow” in 1993. Lee, the son of martial arts star Bruce Lee, died in surgery on March 31, 1993. He was 28. “The Crow,” directed by Alex Proyas, was released in May of 1994.

Massee, who reportedly never watched “The Crow,” returned to New York following the traumatic accident and took time off from acting. “I don’t think you ever get over something like that,” he said in a 2005 interview.

 

RIP Michael.

That would be tough to live with even though your not at fault.

 

What a messed up deal that was. Took one life and hurt the other. RIP to both.

 

RIP. a hell of a thing to be remembered for.

 

Hopefully he is at peace now.

 

It was NOT his fault. If anything, the REAL villain was the piece of **** who loaded the gun improperly by putting a real bullet, instead of a fake one. I hope that individual NEVER got jobs in Hollywood again after that.

Rest in peace, Michael. You are in Heaven with Brandon Lee.

 

R.I.P.

Must've sucked having that on ya mind..at tha time and probably for years after..

Didn't Chuck Norris or someone say at time that was a strange 'Accident' idk? Is Shannon still Alive and Well.. lee's family not had much Luck/Happiness over tha years..

 

I believe it was Steven Seagal who called for a police investigation into the "conspiracy" to kill Bruce and Brandon Lee.

 

A terrific actor who was perfect in character parts (whether it be a good guy as he played in "Supernatural" or a baddie as he played in "Amazing Spider-Man") I find it deplorable the headline that Variety and other publications listed him by when he died. The on set situation with Brandon was a horrible accident and, honestly, I don't doubt that he felt horrible every day even though he wasn't the one who screwed up (and even the person that did, well, they probably are wracked with guilt)

 

A refresher for those that don't know from Wiki

In the scene in which Lee was accidentally shot, Lee's character walks into his apartment and discovers his fiancée being beaten and raped by thugs. Actor Michael Massee's character fires a .44 Magnum revolver at Lee as he walks into the room.[10] A previous scene using the same gun had called for inert dummy cartridges fitted with bullets (but no powder or primer) to be loaded in the revolver for a close-up scene; for film scenes which utilize a revolver (where the bullets are visible from the front) and do not require the gun to actually be fired, dummy cartridges provide the realistic appearance of actual rounds. Instead of purchasing commercial dummy cartridges, the film's prop crew created their own by pulling the bullets from live rounds, dumping the powder charge then reinserting the bullets. However, they unknowingly or unintentionally left the live primer in place at the rear of the cartridge. At some point during filming the revolver was apparently discharged with one of these improperly-deactivated cartridges in the chamber, setting off the primer with enough force to drive the bullet partway into the barrel, where it became stuck (a condition known as a squib load). The prop crew either failed to notice this or failed to recognize the significance of this issue.

In the fatal scene, which called for the revolver to be actually fired at Lee from a distance of 3.6–4.5 meters (12–15 feet), the dummy cartridges were exchanged with blank rounds, which feature a live powder charge and primer, but no bullet, thus allowing the gun to be fired without the risk of an actual projectile. But since the bullet from the dummy round was already trapped in the barrel, this caused the .44 Magnum bullet to be fired out of the barrel with virtually the same force as if the gun had been loaded with a live round, and it struck Lee in the abdomen, mortally wounding him.[11] He was rushed to the New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, North Carolina, where he underwent 6 hours of surgery. However, attempts to save him were unsuccessful, and Lee was pronounced dead at 1:03 p.m. EST. The shooting was ruled an accident.

 

It's sad what happened to Brandon Lee, but to me it's even sadder what this guy went through- the accident changed his life forever, and it was something he had to carry with him for the rest of his life. Now the guy's gone and that's all the press wants to remember him for. What's saddest is that this is how the press prefers for him to be remembered- all in order to sell a few more papers.

 

Its sad that this was his unfortunate claim to fame. A fame that he eschewed. He was a journeyman actor who would have passed with little remembrance from the public. He did not do anything but his part. I have shot a gun on stage before and was warned to fire low to keep the wadding from hitting the other actor. The guy had loaded the gun with double powder in performance and that puppy had a kick to it with a blank. Oh and I was deaf for an hour after.

RIP Funboy. Respect.

 

very underrated actor ! I remember him in 24 very good in that. RIP.

 

Damn shame, talented guy.

 

Forgot one detail. I was not allowed to fire the gun in rehearsal and when I did fire in performance the other actor went down for real. The wadding bounced off the floor and hit him in the crotch. He stayed down as he was supposed to be dead. Incidentally it was HIS gun.

 

Well to EW's credit, they went with the headline "Actor best best known for role on 24 has died", and while the tragedy was mentioned, it was not the headline and it was not made the definition of his life.

 

She's 47.

 

Michael Massee lived in my neighborhood and I believe was an owner of a terrific kid's clothing shop. When I first started seeing him around I only knew him from a Season One of "24", I had thought he made a great villain for the half season he recurred, until we found out Dennis Hopper was the real bad guy. It was only later that I learned of his role in "The Crow" tragedy.he also did a fine job on the short lived ABC drama "Flash Forward".

Oddly enough I had been working at the same studio in Wilmington, NC concurrent to "The Crow" production on the Coen Bros. film, "The Hudsucker Proxy". If I recall correctly Lee was shot on the same soundstage where Hudsucker's Anne's 440 beatnick juice and coffee bar scenes were filmed as part of that film's finale.

I'm also reminded that I would often see Massee with his young daughter, my deepest condolences go out to her and Massee's wife and family.

The neighborhood also lost "Homocide" and Coen Bros. regular Jon Polito recently, and was the location of the tragic accidental death of Anton Yelchin earlier this year,

 

Oh Cool, aging better than me an all ..

atb

Mind me beard don't help..