At the 59th Monte Carlo Television Festival this Saturday, actresses Gabrielle Union and Jessica Alba spoke about how the horrific accident on the set of their action cop series “L.A.’s Finest” affected them and the crew, Variety reported They also took the time to pay tribute to the main victim of the incident, executive producer/co-showrunner Brandon Sonnier, whose leg was amputated below the knee as a result of the nightmarish incident.
Back in February, a stunt car on the San Pedro, California set of the show, struck a shipping container, causing it to roll onto Sonnier and co-showrunner Brandon Margolis, who were watching the car stunt scene from a monitor in the video village. Sonnier’s leg was pinned by the container, and his foot was amputated as a result of the injury. Speaking in Monte Carlo, Union said: “I don’t know if there is a word that’s big enough to describe how the whole production felt, how everyone associated with the show felt, I don’t know if saying it was ‘heartbreaking’ or ‘devastating’ is enough. I don’t have a word. With all of my fancy degrees I don’t have a word that’s big enough to describe how we felt." She continued, “I think Brandon [Sonnier] led us. Um… He was back coaching on the sidelines of his kids’ games within a week and a half,” Union struggled to keep her emotions in check as she concluded with “we were still like… and he was like ‘It’s my new normal; get on board, guys.’”
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Alba went on to add: “A fully hands-on father for… yes, he is so resilient and inspiring. But when you go through something that is like that you see the type of family and community that you surround yourself with, and he and all of us really came together as a family in a way that you just never even realize until something like that happens.
“We’ve been texting," she continued, "they are excited for this next season. They are already pitching different things. We are securing our crew. They are texting us about that. There are many emojis that he is using. Yeah, he is just so resilient. He’s like: Okay, great! Back in the writers’ room. Who do we need? Who is going to be permanent. What directors do we need. Are we going to start lining up…”
Union spoke again to add: “He was like: ‘Guys, this is the new normal, and I want to make sure that while I still have a seat at this table I keep that door open, and I have embraced my new normal. Get on board, let’s move forward, and who else can we empower this season… female directors, directors of color, creating storylines that touch even more communities. He’s leading and we are following.”
