A short list of celebrities who got into motorcycle accidents — and lived to tell the tale

A short list of celebrities who got into motorcycle accidents — and lived to tell the tale

Motorcycle accidents happen every day all around the world. But when a celebrity is involved in one, it makes the news. Take, for example, Game of Thrones alum Jason Momoa, who collided with a motorcyclist on July 24, 2022. He wasn’t even driving a motorcycle himself, yet there were numerous articles written about his fender bender.

Unlike Momoa, some celebrities have been in motorcycle accidents while riding a motorcycle. Here’s a list of actors who cheated death and lived on to tell the tale.

Keanu Reeves revs up his engine

Reeves is such an avid motorcycle rider (he even has a motorcycle company) that it’s no surprise that he’s had his fair share of close calls and crashes. His first serious accident happened In 1988 when he was 23 years old. He was riding along Topanga Canyon Boulevard at about 50 miles an hour when he hit a hairpin turn. He spiraled out of control and lay on the road for half an hour before the ambulance came. Reeves was convinced he was going to die.

But he didn’t. And what he called a “demon ride” would just be one in his long list of road mishaps. In a particular accident that involved a car bumping him off his motorcycle, he suffered a bloody mouth, a broken tooth, and an exposed shin bone. Perhaps the only good thing about this was that there wasn’t any lawsuit involved.

Brad Pitt tumbles into LA traffic

In 2009, Pitt was riding his custom motorcycle in Los Angeles when he collided with a car. Photos of the incident showed that the actor was weaving through traffic when the car beside him suddenly stopped because of a red light. This may have disoriented the Inglourious Basterds star, who lost his balance and clipped the mirror of a parked vehicle when he crashed into it at slow speed.

But that’s just one of the many versions of the incident. In another version, Pitt was trying to escape a paparazzo who trailed him when he got into the accident. In yet another version, the paparazzo himself hit Pitt’s motorcycle from behind.

Thankfully, the actor got out with only a couple of scratches. The same could not be said for his bike, which had to be towed from the scene.

The Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger breaks the law

In 2006, the Terminator star was riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle in Brentwood, Los Angeles when he hit a car. The bad news: Schwarzenegger didn’t have a motorcycle license when it happened. The worse news: he was the governor of California at the time. The public official was fined a couple of hundred dollars for his illegal behavior. He also suffered a nasty cut on his upper lip, which required 15 stitches.

But this wasn’t his closest brush with death because of a motorcycle accident. Five years prior — even before he was a governor — he had broken several ribs in a crash.

Schwarzenegger’s road fiascos are not limited to motorcycles, either. Earlier this year, he was involved in a four-car collision wherein one driver ended up in hospital.

George Clooney claims to have used up all of his nine lives

Clooney played the titular character Batman in Batman & Robin (1997). He won an Oscar for his supporting role in Syriana (2005). His movie Fail Safe (2000), where he had a lead role, has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Needless to say, he is critically acclaimed and very famous. However, instead of being an asset, his popularity was to his detriment when he got into a grave motorcycle accident in 2018.

The actor was driving 70 miles per hour in Italy when a car turned in front of him, effectively ejecting him from his bike. Miraculously, he landed on all fours. Any other landing could have seriously injured or even killed him.

In an interview, he joked that he had used all of his nine lives to walk away from the incident unharmed. He also lamented that instead of helping him out, bystanders at the site of the accident took photos and videos of him.

Well, that’s one price to pay for fame.

These are just a few examples of celebrities who have been in motorcycle accidents. In some cases, it is unclear (or undisclosed) whose fault the accident was. However, one thing is for sure: motorcycle accidents can happen to anyone, even celebrities.

Always be careful when you're on the road. But if you get into a motorcycle accident or suffer any personal injury, call our lawyers at Buckingham, LaGrandeur, and Williams so we can give sound legal advice and help you get the best possible outcomes. Contact us today.