Although filming on MIDNIGHT RIDER was suspended following the tragic death of camera assistant Sarah Jones in February, director Randall Miller was hoping to restart pre-production soon on the planned Gregg Allman biopic. If (and it's a very big if at this point) Miller and production company Unclaimed Freight are going to move forward with their film, they will need to find someone else to play Allman. Deadline is reporting William Hurt has left the troubled project, but according to sources, the filmmakers “were already looking to recast some roles,” including Hurt's.
Sarah Jones was struck and killed by a train while filming for MIDNIGHT RIDER on a trestle, and her death (which is still being investigated) has sparked new conversation within the entertainment industry regarding film safety. No word on if Tyson Ritter, Eliza Dushku and other cast members are still attached to MIDNIGHT RIDER, but losing William Hurt could be the final blow for the biopic.
MIDNIGHT RIDER should just be canceled, in my opinion. There are plenty of accidents every year on movie sets, however it really seems like Sarah Jones' death could have been prevented, and I think pulling the plug on the biopic would be the right thing to do. We'll have to wait and see what's going to happen with Randall Miller's film, but right now things aren't looking good for MIDNIGHT RIDER.