Movie extra injured in horror Batgirl motorbike accident reveals two-year ordeal as she gets set to sue producers
A MOVIE extra nearly killed by a speeding motorbike on the Scots set of the doomed Batgirl film is suing Hollywood studio Warner Bros for £200,000.
Cristina Stanovici, 36, was mowed down by the bike and said “the pain is there every day” more than two years on from the horror incident.
We revealed last year how the marine engineer was left with devastating injuries after the horror smash while filming for the doomed superhero flick – and four surgeries later fears she’ll never return to normal.
She broke down in tears as she bravely retraced her steps in Bothwell Street, Glasgow, where she was hired as a paid extra for the Warner Brothers film.
Now, her lawyers are bringing forward their plans to sue the production company behind the movie for £200,000 – plus interest and expenses.
Tonight, she said: “I decided to come back to the place where it happened as part of my recovery.
I decided to come back to the place where it happened as part of my recovery. I had a good cry as I walked around the place but I don’t like being here
Cristina Stanovici
“I had a good cry as I walked around the place but I don’t like being here.
“It’s been more than two years and my lawyer is now ready to take them to court.
“I was quite anxious because you have three years to make a complaint and it’s going to be three years in March so the clock was ticking.
“I feel like the production company should have to pay for what I’ve been through.
“I know it won’t be the millions of dollars you would get if it had happened in America.
“But it’s not just about the money, it’s about acknowledgement that it should not have happened and I did nothing wrong.”
Cristina, of the city’s Yoker, suffered a broken thigh, shin, hip, pelvis and thumb and a head gash when the bike carrying a camera ploughed into her on March 4, 2022.
She and other extras had been asked to stand on the pavement while a fire engine raced along the street during a 3am shoot.
At the same time an e-motorbike with a camera rig was travelling along the pavement behind them to record the action.
As it passed by Cristina, the bike collided with her and sent her sprawling to the ground.
She was rushed to the Glasgow Royal Infirmary where it was feared by surgeons she may not be able to survive the trauma.
I am still not 100 percent and I don’t think I will ever be. The pain is there every day and something hurts all the time
Cristina Stanovici
She had to use crutches for three months, has permanent scars, was unable to work for six months and now works from home.
Her ongoing suffering forms part of the personal injury action now being pursued by Thompsons Solicitors against American Night Productions Ltd, a subsidiary of film behemoth Warner Brothers.
It’s understood they are seeking at least £200,000 from the production firm, as well as interest from the date of the incident and legal expenses.
Partner Joel Shaw has drawn on the expertise of a healthy and safety consultant who claims more should have been done to protect his client – not least because of an alleged near-miss before Cristina was injured.
He explained: “We have got statements from a couple of other people who were on set and one of them had a near-miss with the motorbike before Cristina was hit.
“So that tells you they should have known because someone else nearly got injured by this bike.
“At that point they should have stopped and checked if this was a safe way to do it.
I would pay ten times any amount if I could get my health back
Cristina Stanovici
“They have got to show they have taken reasonable steps to ensure the safety of our client.
“We have consulted a health and safety expert who says they haven’t done that and they could have taken more care.
“It seems like a common sense case and this simply should not have happened on a film set.”
We told how the cursed superhero movie starring Leslie Grace in the title role was later scrapped by studio bosses after poor reviews from audiences at test screenings.
Cristina hopes to move on with her life but has resigned herself to the fact she will never escape the life-changing consequences of the smash.
She said: “I have had another two surgeries this year to remove the metal plate in my knee and in May I had the rod removed from my femur which was a big operation.
TRAUMATISED
CRISTINA previously told how doctors battled to save her life afte rhse was rushed to hospital.
She said: “I broke a lot of bones.
“My femur, my tibia plateau, my pubic bone, a lot of non-displaced fractures in the pelvis, a broken thumb, and laceration to the head.
They did the femur surgery after approximately 10 hours.
“It lasted more than five hours, I had five blood transfusions and I almost died.”
“To hear the anaesthesiologist say ‘we had our fingers crossed for you’ really sends a chill down your spine.
“The surgeon told me it was one of the worst cases he has seen in his eight years at the hospital.”
Thinking back to the moment she was hit, Brave Cristina added: “It hit me from the right side and I went flying in the air.
“I started screaming to get the attention of the paramedics as I remembered seeing an ambulance on site in the previous days.
“I lay there for almost an hour while they checked me and stabilised me. Unfortunately, I didn’t lose my consciousness.
“The memory will forever traumatise me.”
“But even after all that I am still not 100 percent and I don’t think I will ever be.
“The pain is there every day and something hurts all the time.
“I try to avoid taking pain killers because I don’t want to wreck my stomach and my liver.
“But if I’m trying to enjoy myself and have a good time, like when I’m on vacation, usually I have to take something for the pain.
“I know it’s not going away because I’ve talked to a lot of people.
“I even have a support group on Facebook of people who have been through this surgery with a femur and a knee.
“And almost all of them have some pain forever so I think that’s the reality of it.
“I would pay ten times any amount if I could get my health back.”
Warner Bros have been approached for comment.