Olivia Wilde revealed on the Armchair Expert podcast (via Entertainment Weekly) that she was nearly trampled to death by a horse on the set of Jon Favreau’s 2011 western action movie Cowboys and Aliens, which was based on the graphic novel of the same name. Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford headlined Tentpole, with supporting roles including Wilde, Goggins, Sam Rockwell and Paul Dano.
“Walt Goggins saved my life on that movie,” Wilde said. “He did that. I had a bad horse accident and he saved me. It was me, Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford, running at full speed through the desert with 40 horses behind us. It felt like we were in the lead fighting aliens or something.”
Wilde said that during filming there was a “big ditch” for the horse to jump over, and the actor was accidentally thrown off the horse.
“Sure enough, this horse jumped and ran me off in the craziest way,” she said. “I fell. I hit my head and my back and I was lying[on the ground]but unfortunately I was on the other side of this dirt edge, which meant all the horses behind me couldn’t see me. And there was a lot of dust too. I remember putting my ear to the ground, but… , it sounded, and it sounded like thunder, like they were coming towards me. And I thought — that sounds so dramatic — but I thought it would be fast. Here comes the crushed applesauce.
“Walt Goggins was looking ahead (at me) and instantly thought he was going to turn the horse sideways right in front of me and let us all run into him,” Wilde continued. “And he was able to cope with it because he’s a great rider. People around us thought maybe he just went crazy, but he protected my body on the ground. So I owe him my life. It’s crazy. He’s a real hero.”
Cowboys and Aliens was released in July 2011 and was a disappointment, grossing $175 million worldwide against a production budget of $160 million. However, reviews were positive, with Variety praising the film as a “full-bodied, round and satisfying yarn.”
