£1.6m fine over Harrison Ford injury

Production company say it deeply regrets incident.

by Jennie Kermode

Harrison Ford as Han Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Harrison Ford as Han Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Foodles Production Ltd. was today fined £1.6m by a judge at Aylesbury Crown Court for its role in an accident that caused serious injury to Harrison Ford during the filming of Star Wars: Episode 7 - The Force Awakens in June 2014. The actor, who is now 74, was struck by a door when rehearsing a scene set in the Millennium Falcon. He suffered a broken leg and a serious cut to his hand, and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which brought the case, said he could have been killed.

In summing up the case, Judge Francis Sheridan said the company had failed to communicate properly with Ford, who would have been alert to the risk if details of a prior assessment had been shared. "It's just incredible that so much was left to chance," he stated.

Foodles, which plead guilty to the two charges brought against it earlier this year, has already paid compensation to Ford. The judge noted that it immediately implemented further safety measures recommended by HSE.

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