Performer Christopher Tierney has finally given his first interview about the terrible accident that put a temporary stop to Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark and sent him to the hospital with four broken ribs, three fractured vertebrae, a fractured scapula, a fractured elbow, and a fracture to the back of his skull. He told New York's CBS-2 that despite the "little bit of human error" on the part of a crew member(s) that resulted in his potentially fatal fall from 30 feet in the air, all is forgiven. When asked directly if he wished to take legal action, Tierney said, "No, I don't need to.""I just didn't get tethered to the stage," said Tierney in an exclusive on-camera interview with CBS-2. According to the actor, the cables used to secure Spider-Man stunt performers have 9,000 pounds of tension strength, but they are apparently useless if not actually attached to anything. Despite the rather serious and quite nearly fatal error, Tierney had only kind things to say about the Spider-Man crew: "I wasn't scared. These guys, they know safety. I trust them explicitly. With my life. Yeah, absolutely. They don't mess around."

Following up on the Actors Equity union's temporary cessation of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark performances and the Broadway community's cries for vengeance, CBS-2 broadcast a new quote from AE's President, Nick Wyman: "That Chris is not the first actor, nor the second, but rather the fourth to be injured on Spider-Man is frustrating and maddening and, to some, infuriating."

Curiously, Tierney expresses no anger or any other sort of disappointment about his situation, which involves metal pins and rods in his back and will entail several months of recovery and physical therapy. In the face of CBS reporter Dana Tyler's obvious and perfectly reasonable incredulousness, Tierney said it's all "water under the bridge" and "forgiven and forgotten" and that he can't wait to return to the show.


Of course, the natural reaction for seasoned journalists as skeptical as we is to wonder whether Christopher Tierney has been "gotten to." The facts speak for themselves: the actor was not properly protected and he nearly died, which in most universes would necessitate some kind of litigation if not a massive settlement. But when asked explicitly whether he intends to take any such legal action, Tierney said, "No, I don't need to," which is obviously a phrase that covers all manners of sins. Sadly, Ms Tyler apparently didn't follow-up on the question, but I think we can assume that Mr. Tierney will be taken care of, as well he should.

In related news, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark has cast a new actress in the leading role of Arachne following the departure of Natalie Mendoza, who herself suffered a concussion on the set of the Julie Taymor-directed Marvel musical. The character will now be played by T.V. Carplo, who has already portrayed Arachne in some performers, and who we wish the very bust best of luck.

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