Jackie Chan has shattered his breastbone, foot, nose, and even his superciliary bone (which is his eyebrow bone) during the course of his lengthy stunt-filled career. He has a dislocated pelvis as well as a cheek bone. His spine and tailbone have also been affected. He’s hurt his chin, knee, ankle, and pretty much every other body part named in the children’s song “The Skeleton Dance.”

Jackie Chan reminisced about what happened on the set of Armour of God during a recent interview, mentioning that he was sipping a beer for a scene early in the day. Water couldn’t really be substituted at the time because the scene needed him to actually crack open the can of beer and take a sip. So far, everything had gone well. After that, Chan had to practically jump from an overhang into a tall tree after a morning of popping open a drink. The first take went well, but Chan thought he could do a better job with the situation.

On the second take, the tree’s limbs gave way, and the actor plummeted to the ground, desperately grasping at other broken branches.

He slammed against a rock with force. “My whole body was numb,” he explained. He was rushed to the hospital and underwent surgery to repair his broken skull and the bone that had entered his brain as a consequence of the fall. “[I] almost died.”

He didn’t realize how bad the issue was at the time, and the team began to worry.

He said: “I think I landed on my back first. I tried to get up but a lot of people pushed me down (saying) ’Don’t move, get the medic.’

“Suddenly I had a lot of things put in my ear. I think ‘What the hell is that?’ Then, wow, suddenly all the blood (was rushing) from my ear.”

Armour of God was shot in Yugoslavia and other countries rather than the United States because Hollywood’s safety laws and regulations are significantly more sophisticated and regimented now than they were in 1986. However, the injuries sustained by Jackie Chan exemplifies why stunts are a risky business, even for someone as well-trained and experienced as the martial arts star.

Chan still performs his own stunts nowadays, notably in his most recent picture, The Foreigner, although it’s safe to assume he’s been practicing with water.