'The Walking Dead' stuntman dies after accident on Georgia set
— -- A stuntman injured on the set of "The Walking Dead" has died from his injuries after an accident on set, officials said.
John Bernecker was pronounced dead Wednesday evening, Richard Hawk of the Coweta County Coroner's Office confirmed today to ABC News. The cause of death is accidental blunt force trauma.
Bernecker, 33, was performing a stunt fall Wednesday afternoon from a 22-foot balcony when it appeared he did not "get good separation from the balcony" on the way down, according to a Coweta County Sheriff's Office report obtained by ABC News. The report states Bernecker fell "head and neck first" on the concrete floor, and landed "just inches away" from a pad that was constructed for the stunt fall.
The police report cites a description of the incident from Matthew Goodwin, who is identified on IMDb as an assistant director on "The Walking Dead." Bernecker was treated by a medic on the scene and then airlifted to Atlanta Medical Center, according to the report.
AMC issued a statement Thursday acknowledging Bernecker suffered “serious injuries” but not confirming his death. The network also said production for the show about a zombie apocalypse had been "temporarily shut down."
"We are saddened to report that John Bernecker, a talented stuntman for 'The Walking Dead' and numerous other television shows and films, suffered serious injuries from a tragic accident on set," AMC said. "He was immediately transported to an Atlanta hospital and we have temporarily shut down production.
"We are keeping John and his family in our thoughts and prayers," the statement continued.
The network did not immediately reply to ABC News today.
Bernecker, also a fight choreographer, has worked on projects including "The Hunger Games" and Marvel's upcoming movie, "Black Panther," according to his IMDb page.
SAG-AFTRA, the union that represents stunt performers and coordinators, said in a statement Thursday it is investigating Bernecker's accident.
Production for "The Walking Dead" was also temporarily halted in 2013 when an actor portraying a "walker" on the show was run over by a truck and hospitalized.
Lauren Cohan, the actress who plays Maggie in "The Walking Dead," posted a message on her Twitter account Thursday asking fans of the show to pray for Bernecker and his family.
The show's eighth season was set to air on AMC this Fall.
ABC News' Rex Sakamoto contributed to this report.
