James Cameron is known for being one of the most successful filmmakers of all time, but achieving that level of success often comes at a price.
Many collaborators have learned this the hard way after working with the director.
Cameron pushes his cast and crew to their limits, which is understandable considering he constantly pushes himself to redefine what cinema can achieve technically.
Countless stories exist about actors and crew members experiencing his intense work ethic firsthand, but there was one film in particular that brought them dangerously close to disaster.
While there have been other close calls throughout his career – including the infamous incident on the set of Titanic involving spiked clam chowder – it was The Abyss that posed the greatest risk to everyone involved.
When a creative mind like Cameron’s constantly pushes boundaries, both physically and technologically, the potential for something to go wrong is always present.
Thankfully, such dangerous situations have been less common in recent years.
This underwater sci-fi film effectively set the tone for Cameron’s career, featuring a shoot that was incredibly difficult, complicated, and challenging.
It combined state-of-the-art visual effects with practical sequences that pushed the performers to their absolute limits.
It was a unique approach to filmmaking, but the results spoke for themselves.
Filming large portions of the movie underwater in a specially-built tank located in an abandoned nuclear power plant was just part of the danger.
Divers suffered from skin burns and hair discoloration due to prolonged exposure to chlorinated water.
One risky concept that was considered but ultimately abandoned was liquid breathing.
While it had been tested on animals, actor Ed Harris wisely decided against it.
Instead, he held his breath inside a helmet filled with liquid and was dragged to the surface.
He later admitted to Entertainment Weekly that the cast and crew felt like “guinea pigs.”
The intensity of the shoot took its toll on Harris, who confessed to sobbing uncontrollably in his car on the way home.
However, co-star Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio had an even worse experience.
She reportedly endured a physical and emotional breakdown during filming and never worked with Cameron again.
While he didn’t directly address these reports, Cameron did acknowledge the extreme difficulty of the shoot.
During an intense scene where Mastrantonio’s character is being slapped by Harris’ character and resuscitated, the camera unexpectedly ran out of film.
The actors were not informed, which led to Mastrantonio storming off the set, shouting at the cast and crew, “We are not animals!”
Cameron himself faced danger when his oxygen supply ran out while he was at the bottom of the massive underwater tank.
Although offered a replacement breathing regulator, it turned out to be faulty, causing him to ingest a significant amount of water.
In order to escape the safety diver’s grasp and return to the surface, Cameron resorted to punching the diver in the face.
Actor Leo Burmester commented that “Jim Cameron is the type of director who pushes you to the edge, but he doesn’t make you do anything he wouldn’t do himself.”
This meant that many involved with The Abyss experienced lasting effects from the physically and emotionally demanding shoot.
