Gabriela Cedillo: The Transformers 3 Stunt Accident and Settlement

On September 1, 2010, Gabriela Cedillo, a 24-year-old bank teller working as an extra on Transformers: Dark of the Moon, suffered catastrophic brain damage when a steel cable broke loose during a stunt on Cline Avenue in Hammond, Indiana, and tore through her windshield. She was left blind in one eye, cognitively impaired, and dependent on 24-hour care for life. In May 2012, a Cook County judge approved an $18.5 million settlement with Paramount Pictures.¹

How the Stunt Went Wrong

The production had shut down westbound lanes of Cline Avenue to film an action sequence. About 80 extras were hired to drive their own personal vehicles through the background of the shot while stunt cars performed choreographed maneuvers. Extras earned their day rate plus $25 for use of their cars.² Cedillo was driving her 2006 Toyota Corolla.

The stunt involved a tow cable attached to a vehicle that was supposed to flip on cue. A metal bracket welded to the stunt car failed. The cable, or a piece of metal attached to it, whipped across the roadway, smashed through Cedillo’s windshield, and struck the right side of her head.³ A fellow extra, Blaine Baker, described the cable slicing through her car and “through her skull,” after which the vehicle was dragged along a center divider for roughly half a mile.⁴

According to her attorneys, the same stunt had failed the day before. The production tried it again on September 1 using a bracket that had been re-welded overnight, a repair her legal team later called completely inadequate.¹ Paramount initially called the incident a “freak accident” and said Cedillo had been more than 500 feet from the stunt, while acknowledging that a “timing issue” had required repeating the previous day’s sequence.²

Her Injuries

Cedillo was rushed to a hospital and underwent emergency brain surgery. She lost a large portion of the right side of her brain and about a third of the top of her skull, which was later reconstructed with a replacement plate.¹ She was left blind in one eye and suffered memory loss, seizures, and periods of hallucinations.⁵ Her attorney Todd Smith said she could walk, talk, and feed herself, but had significant cognitive impairment and could not remember going to the bathroom five minutes earlier.⁶ Her condition requires round-the-clock care for the rest of her life.

The Indiana Safety Investigation

The Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration released its findings in October 2010 and cleared the filmmakers of any safety violations, calling the incident “an unfortunate and unforeseeable accident.” Spokesperson Marc Lotter said the weld had been performed by a certified welder and that “all necessary safety precautions were in place.”⁷ No fines or citations were issued.⁸

Cedillo’s legal team disputed those conclusions. Mechanical engineer Chris Ferrone, hired by the family, examined the weld and called it “superficial,” saying it lacked “penetration or fusion of the two pieces” and had no real strength. Her attorneys argued that attaching the cable to a newly welded bracket, rather than directly to the car’s axle, was fundamentally unsafe.⁹ The ruling was seen as a possible setback for the pending lawsuit, but her attorneys pressed on.¹⁰

The Lawsuit and the $18.5 Million Settlement

Cedillo’s family sued Paramount Pictures in Cook County Circuit Court in October 2010, alleging that the accident resulted from a negligently executed weld and that the production had placed untrained extras in dangerous proximity to a high-risk stunt.¹¹ Chicago-based metal distributor Ryerson Inc. was also named as a defendant.¹² The complaint further alleged that the production lacked the required permits for explosive devices on the day of the accident.¹³

According to Smith, Paramount had initially promised to cover Cedillo’s medical bills at Loyola University Medical Center but “in reality, they did everything they could to avoid payment.” Cedillo was eventually forced onto public aid.¹⁴ Paramount also tried without success to move the case from Illinois to California. The prospect of adding director Michael Bay and his production company, Platinum Dunes, as named defendants appeared to accelerate settlement talks. The parties reached an $18.5 million agreement, which a Cook County judge approved on May 23, 2012.¹⁵

What the Settlement Covered

The $18.5 million was intended to pay for Cedillo’s lifelong nursing and rehabilitation, and to compensate her for the loss of her ability to work, marry, or have children. Part of the money was structured as monthly payments to fund her ongoing care.¹⁶ At least $5 million of the total was designated for institutions that had treated her while she was on public aid.³

Safety Questions About Extras on Film Sets

The case drew attention to how background actors are used on major productions. Cedillo was not a stunt performer. She was a bank teller driving her own car through a live stunt zone for a combined fee that included $25 for the use of her vehicle.⁶ Industry observers questioned why non-professional drivers were weaving around a stunt at all, with some characterizing the practice as potential gross negligence.²

According to her attorney, extras on set that day had been told via radio to “watch out for the debris” as they drove, with people reportedly trying to dodge flying objects at speed.⁸

1
CBS News Chicago. 18.5M Settlement in Transformers 3 Filming Accident
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Deadline. Transformers 3 Movie Extra Seriously Hurt During Indiana Stunt Gone Wrong in Her Own Car
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ABC 7 Chicago. Transformers 3 Accident Settlement
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ABC 7 Los Angeles. Transformers 3 Set Accident
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BBC News. Transformers Actor Stunt Brain Damage
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Courthouse News Service. Injured Movie Extra Gets 18 Million
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Chicago Tribune. Transformers 3 Cleared in Injury of Extra
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NBC Chicago. 18.5M Settlement for Injured Transformers Extra
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ABC 7 News. Transformers 3 IOSHA Investigation
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The Wrap. Indiana Officials Won’t Fine Transformers 3 Over Set Accident
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Los Angeles Times. Injured Worker Transformers Settlement
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FindLaw. Transformers 3 Stunt Injury Spawns Lawsuit
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Courthouse News Service. Injured Transformers Extra Gets 18 Million
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Deadline. Michael Bay’s Name Helped Speed Paramount Settlement of Injured Extra’s Transformers 3 Lawsuit
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NBC Chicago. Transformers 3 Lawsuit Cedillo
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State Journal-Register. 18.5 Million Settlement