One of the main requirements for working on the set of 50 Cent’s new horror film Skill House? A strong stomach. According to the rapper, a.k.a. Curtis James Jackson III, one camera operator was put to the test while filming a specific kill scene that was so gore-laden, it caused him to faint. Jackson hopped on social media to share the news: partly to affirm the crew member was safe and sound, and partly to broadcast the nauseating new film tease.
“Crazy night one of our camera men passed out cold for 30min from the scene. Couldn’t take how real it was,” Jackson gleefully tweeted. “We’re elevating horror to the next level. This is gonna change the rules of the game.”
Skill House’s director Josh Stolberg, who previously worked on the Saw franchise’s most recent additions Jigsaw and Spiral, backed up Jackson’s story with his own tweet. “Yikes!!! We shot a kill scene last night and the camera operator became so nauseated that he passed out and the camera crashed to the ground,” Stolberg recounted. “He’s okay now but… get ready for some crazy shit!”
Producer Ryan Kavanaugh, who was on-set during the alleged fainting, credited Skill House’s make-up and effects artist Steve Johnson for the incident, calling his SFX work “a whole new level of horror.”
“When it happened, it was nighttime, dimly lit, and we were in the middle of filming a frightening scene that involved a lot of blood,” Kavanaugh told Entertainment Weekly. “One of our camera operators literally dropped and passed out. The camera broke, an on-set medic came and tended to him, and we broke for almost an hour. He was a trooper though, and he resumed shooting within an hour.”
Jackson himself came to the same conclusion about Johnson’s work, which he expressed on his Instagram.
“This guy Steve Johnson and Stolberg are responsible for this shit,” Jackson wrote. “They did the last 2 SAW movies...They are gonna fvck [sic] around and kill the crew. SMH.”
Although Skill House still has yet to receive an official release date, when the day does come, bringing smelling salts (or leaving your wooziest friends at home) seems a safe bet.