Challenge Accepted! Will Smith to Heli-Bungee Over Grand Canyon
I Am Legend won’t just be a movie title for actor Will Smith after he dangles off a bungee cord from a helicopter over the Grand Canyon.
The YouTube creator group Yes Theory got jiggy with Smith in a video released last February, challenging the movie star to do a bungee jump off a helicopter. The folks at Yes Theory saw Smith as a hero that broke past fear to accomplish great things and wanted Smith to accept to help the group’s movement to “choose love over fear” by accepting their heart-racing challenge.
After seeing the traction online, the 49-year-old Smith accepted the challenge in a video posted on his YouTube channel. However, the Bright actor had three conditions before taking the big leap:
The stunt will be done for charity. It will have to happen after he finishes shooting a movie so he isn’t in breach of his film contract. That the death-defying stunt be done over the Grand Canyon.
So when will this happen? The Fresh Prince is currently in Savannah, Georgia shooting a movie spearheaded by Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon director Ang Lee, so there will be no bungeeing until after filming has finished. After that he has no publicly known commitments.
However, even once Smith’s schedule is cleared, there are some concerns and hurdles before the stunt can be safely done. There are still high demand for tourist helicopter rides over the Canyon and having a crowded airspace could make it too dangerous to attempt a bungee jump. There are also areas of the Canyon that are restricted from having any commercial flights or tours.
As of this writing, Smith’s team have yet to reach out to the Grand Canyon National Park’s public affairs or commercial filming offices to request clearance to perform and record the stunt. With that said, Smith has the option of reaching out to third-party air tour operators in order to go through with the jump.
Be sure to check in regularly for updates on this stunt as more information comes in.
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