A crew member of the fifth installment of the already troubled 'Indiana Jones' has been found dead under mysterious circumstances on location in Morocco. The body of camera operator Nic Cupac, 54, was discovered in his hotel room in Fes in the northeastern parts of the country, according to The Sun.
Police have launched an investigation and is trying to find out if there is foul play involved in the death of Cupac. An official cause of the death hasn't been publicly disclosed, the outlet reported. The much-hyped 'Indiana Jones 5' was already marred with innumerable problems including the film's lead Harrison Ford's injury and is now into more trouble following Cupac's death.
Sudden Death
Cupac was found dead under mysterious circumstances in his hotel room in the city of Fes, Walt Disney Studios confirmed on Thursday. "Our hearts go out to the family and friends of Nic Cupac, an incredibly talented colleague and member of the film community who will be greatly missed," a rep for the production told The Post. "His sudden passing was not production related. Nic was a grip on 2nd unit."
Police have launched an investigation and have not given the official cause of his death. Although they haven't ruled out any foul play, so far indications are that died of natural causes.
Cupac was in Morocco with other crew members of the film to work on a stunt scene involving a rickshaw included more than 100 people. An industry veteran, who also worked on films in the "Jurassic Park," "Harry Potter" and "Star Wars" franchises, Cupac only recently joined the crew in Morocco to help film with the filming of the scene.
More Trouble
The big-budget film that stars Ford in the titular role has been trouble plagued since the beginning of the production. The Morocco shooting location involved a complicated set of scene to be filmed. More than 100 crew members had reportedly assembled in the city to prepare for the filming of a major stunt scene using the rickshaw.
Cupac's work as a grip involved helping build and maintaining rigging equipment that supports cameras. The film has already suffered enough delays including due to the pandemic. It's not known if Cupac's death with further delay it.
Cupac's death is the latest roadblock in the film's extensive shooting schedule. In fact, the shooting got impacted even till last week when Morocco banned flights to and from the UK because of the rise in Covid-19 cases.
Ford, 79, was reportedly set to fly into the country just before the ban was announced. It is unclear where he is currently. Also, production of the movie was halted for three months after Ford suffered a severe shoulder injury in June. He only returned to set in Italy two weeks ago.
The movie was originally slated to hit theaters on July 9, 2021, but was pushed back to July 29, 2022, due to the pandemic. Last month, Disney announced it is now scheduled for release in summer 2023.
