- Olivia Wilde revealed that Walton Goggins saved her life during a horse-riding accident.
- The incident occurred when the duo were shooting for the 2011 film Cowboys & Aliens.
- Wilde said that she was riding Western style without a helmet when the accident happened.
Olivia Wilde nearly lost her life while she was filming for the 2011 film Cowboys & Aliens, the actor revealed, crediting co-star Walton Goggins with saving her during a horse-riding accident.
Speaking on Monday's episode of the Armchair Expert podcast, Wilde recalled being thrown off her horse during an action sequence and finding herself directly in the path of dozens of horses charging behind her.
"I had a very bad horse accident, and he saved me," the actress said, referring to Goggins.
Wilde, who said she had ridden horses for most of her life, explained that filming involved Western-style riding, different from the English riding she was familiar with. Wilde said that about two months into filming, she and her co-stars, including Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford, had become "really cocky" about riding horses.
“And we were pretty competitive. And it was me and Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford galloping like full sprint across the desert with like 40 horses behind us,” the Don't Worry Darling star added.
During one sequence, Wilde noticed a large ditch ahead and realised her horse was about to jump it. “We were leading the charge to fight the aliens. We got to a part where I could see ahead of us that there was a large ditch, like a 6-foot ditch, and I was like, ‘This horse is going to jump that ditch',” she continued.
Wilde remembered that she was riding Western style without a helmet when the accident happened. “Sure enough, the horse jumped and bucked me off in the wildest way, and I fell. I hit my head and my back,” she added.
Because she landed behind a ridge of dirt, the dozens of horses following behind could not see her. Looking back, the director said she thought she might die quickly. According to the actress, Goggins spotted the accident and reacted instantly.
“It'll be like pulverised applesauce out. And I was waiting for it to happen. And then Wal Goggins had seen it ahead of him and in a split-second thought to turn his horse sideways right in front of me and let everyone kind of bash into him. And he's a great rider, so he was able to handle that,” the Tron: Legacy star said. "So I owe him my life. It's crazy. He's a real-life hero," she said.
