America’s Got Talent: Extreme stuntman ‘almost dies’ in horrific accident

A daredevil stuntman on a new ‘extreme’ version of Simon Cowell‘s America’s Got Talent has suffered a ‘horrific’ injury while rehearsing on set.

Jonathan Goodwin was suspended 70 feet in the air hanging by his feet while in a straightjacket when the stunt went horribly wrong, TMZ reports.

While rehearsing for the show America’s Got Talent: Extreme at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, the 41-year-old Welsh escapologist was meant to free himself and land on an air mattress, narrowly avoiding two suspended cars that were swinging on either side of him.

However, the report claims that the two cars ended up hitting each other causing them to burst into flames, with Goodwin pinned between them, though it is not clear if the fire was part of a planned pyrotechnic routine.

Goodwin — who competed on season 15 of America’s Got Talent last year — is said to have been air-lifted to hospital where his condition remains unclear, according to the report.

A spokesperson for America’s Got Talent: Extreme confirmed Goodwin’s injury to DailyMail.com.

‘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,’ they said.

 ‘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.’

After he was smashed in the middle of the fiery explosion, Goodwin fell to the ground and reportedly hit his head during the impact.

The fall was so horrific that crew members on the America’s Got Talent: Extreme initially assumed he had been killed in the fall.

However, the stuntman was was conscious and responsive by the time that he was airlifted to a hospital for immediate treatment. 

According to TMZ, Goodwin was immediately taken to surgery and is currently being treated in a trauma unit, though his condition isn’t yet known.

Goodwin has performed similarly death-defying stunts on the show before.

In 2013, he wore a straightjacket and dangled from a blazing rope over the River Thames in London. 

He was suspended upside down from the London Eye and managed to escape, which was all part of his TV series The Incredible Mr Goodwin. 

The performer has successfully completed other risky stunts in the past for the the flagship AGT series, and he’s also been featured on its sister series Britain’s Got Talent.  

During his season 15 performance, Cowell and his fellow judges Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel and Sofía Vergara kept Goodwin in the competition through the semifinals. 

His most dramatic stunt for AGT involved Godwin covering himself in flammable liquid and shackling himself up while put his head in a box so that he couldn’t see.

He had to escape from the restraints in less than 20 seconds after he was set on fire.

Goodwin successful completed the stunt, which set several of the judges on edge, despite it being the first time he had ever attempted the death-defying act.  

In contrast to his fiery stunts, Goodwin went underwater for the BBC special How Not to Become Shark Bait, in which he demonstrated by allowing a Caribbean reef shark to attack him.

AGT’s Terry Crews also hosts the new Extreme version of the competition series, while Simon Cowell, pro wrestler Nikki Bella and stuntman Travis Pastrana are judges. 

Contestants on the new series are vying for a $500,000 prize, but taping is now paused, Deadline reports.

California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) is now looking into the accident, according to the publication.  

Prior to Goodwin’s failed stunt, NBC promoted his episode by saying it featured ‘the most outrageous, unique and jaw-dropping acts of enormous scale and magnitude that simply cannot be confined to a theater stage,’ according to People. 

The accident augurs an unfortunate start to AGT: Extreme, which was just announced at the start of October.

So far, NBC hasn’t announced a premiere date for the competition series, but Goodwin’s injury may push back any intended premiere date.

Earlier this week, Goodwin sparked engagement rumors after he and his girlfriend, Sherlock star Amanda Abbington, went Instagram official after nine months of dating.

‘That was possibly the longest game of hide and seek ever…. #FoundYa ❤️ ,’ he sweetly captioned a photo of the two cuddling up.

The daredevil added a diamond ring emoji in his Instagram bio, leading fans to suspect he had popped the question to the 47-year-old actress, who was previously married to Black Panther’s Martin Freeman.