Shocking reality TV deaths – ball of flames, Jenny Jones murder and stunt gone wrong

When you apply to be on reality TV, you’re probably worrying about looking stupid on camera or what folks back home will be thinking.

But in some situations, lighthearted shows can turn dark, and it becomes a battle between life and death.

Numerous talk show clashes have led to brutal murders after the episode, while stunts on shows like Survivor have a high chance of going wrong.

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Noel Edmonds even saw one of his shows cancelled after a contestant plunged to his death in a bungee jump gone wrong.

Daily Star is taking a look at the most shocking reality TV deaths of all time.

10 dead in helicopter crash

French reality show Dropped didn’t last very long after 10 of its stars were brutally killed in a helicopter crash.

The series was filming in Argentina in 2015, and featured high-profile French athletes who would be dropped into a hostile environment and left to fend for themselves.

However, on the way to their remote location, two helicopters collided in midair – killing boxer Alexis Vastine, swimmer Camille Muffat and sailing champion Florence Arthuad.

Also killed were two Argentine pilots and five other French nationals.

A dramatic video from the incident saw one helicopter smash into the other while flying over trees in a small town, before both vehicles plunged to the ground and exploded in a ball of flames.

After the tragedy, the show never aired.

Jenny Jones Show murder

1995, the height of American daytime talk shows. Nothing could go wrong. Right?

Well, not exactly. One segment on the Jenny Jones Show saw Scott Amedure confess to his crush on Jonathan Schmitz – totally blindsiding the heterosexual Schmitz.

Clearly expecting a woman to reveal herself, Jonathan was left shocked when his “secret crush” turned out to be his acquaintance Scott, who he met at a garage.

Though he appeared friendly on camera, Jonathan was seething under the surface. Three days after the taping, Jonathan returned home to find an anonymous note referring to the incident taped to his door – which was enough to make him grab a shotgun.

He pumped two rounds into 32-year-old Scott’s body, killing him instantly. He then called the police and confessed to the killing – eventually sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison.

Schmitz was released in 2017.

Contestant plummets to death

Over in the UK, Noel Edmonds was left scarred for life after watching a contestant on his show plummet to his death in a bungee jump gone wrong.

One segment of his programme The Late Late Breakfast Show saw members of the public given the chance to take part in death-defying stunts, called ‘Give it a Whirl’.

24-year-old Michael Lush was ready to perform a bungee jump from an exploding box raised more than 100 feet in the air by a crane.

But the clip attaching him to the equipment came loose, and the star fell 120 feet to his death. It was later found that the bungee cord wouldn’t have been strong enough to lift a bag of sugar, and no stunt people had been hired to oversee things.

Trapped in the box, Michael was unable to contact anyone.

Noel later resigned from the show, which was cancelled three days after Michael’s death.

Jerry Springer slaying

In 2000, the Jerry Springer Show aired an episode entitled Secret Mistresses Confronted, which saw guest Ralf Panitz turn up with his new bride Eleanor Panitz and his ex-wife Nancy Campbell.

Everything seemed normal, until Nancy’s body was discovered by police shortly after the show aired.

While filming was going on, Ralf and Eleanor claimed Nancy had been stalking them – but Nancy claimed the trio had spent the night together in a hotel room just days before.

Things escalated in the typical Springer way, with the audience incited to brand Nancy “fat and old” until she stalked off set.

But when her body was found by police, it had been beaten almost beyond recognition.

Ralf and his new wife attempted to flee and cross the Canadian border, but he was eventually caught and charged with second-degree murder.

It turns out Ralf had been going between his two wives, spending alternate nights with each of them, and both Ralf and Nancy had filed domestic violence suits against one another.

Nancy even took out a restraining order against her husband.

Panitz was sentenced to life behind bars, but later appeared on the Discovery+ show Prison Wives alongside Eleanor.

Survivor gone wrong

In 2013, while filming the French edition of Survivor, one contestant sadly died.

Gerald Babin passed away on the very first day of filming the spin-off series in Cambodia. He was first diagnosed with dehydration, but after struggling through two challenges, collapsed in the sand complaining of cramps.

Babin, 25, was eventually airlifted to hospital after initially being treated at a local infirmary, but a series of cardiac arrests on the way there led to his death from “heart failure in dilated cardiomyopathy”.

Production was eventually closed, and a criminal investigation for manslaughter launched.

Ultimate murder

Dubbed the ‘murder that changed reality TV’, 2009 proved to be a year like no other when it came to behind-the-scenes killings.

Picture the scene: filming for VH1 reality series Megan Wants a Millionaire. Appearing on the series was Ryan Jenkins, who also appeared in I Love Money 3.

Ryan was determined to scoop the $250,000 prize money for his new wife Jasmine Fiore, who he had married just five months before.

One member of the production company, Mark Cronin, recalled Ryan being “obsessed” with his model wife, explaining: “He would ask her, ‘Where were you last night?’ Because he’s in Mexico shooting the show, and she lives in Las Vegas.

“He was very jealous and very suspicious of her. We were actually making a story of it on the show. We were like, ‘Look at this guy, he’s obsessed with this [model] he married’.

“It was funny, until it wasn’t funny at all.”

Tragically, Jasmine’s body was later discovered stuffed in a suitcase, left in a dumpster in California – and Jenkins went on the run.

Her body was mutilated beyond all recognition, and Jasmine had to be identified using the serial numbers on her breast implants.

The police never caught up to Jenkins, who was arrested four years prior for assaulting a former girlfriend. By the time he was found, he was dead by suicide in a hotel room in British Columbia.

Lighthouse death

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2015 proved a tragic year in the world of French reality TV.

While filming for the show France’s Favourite Moment, a young acrobat sadly fell to her death from the top of a lighthouse.

Acrobat troupe Adrenaline were scheduled to perform on the programme, tied with ropes to the lighthouse, but one young star plummeted to her death when she fell to the ground below.

Reports suggested there was a problem with the safety rope, as 12-year-old Lilou Gaude died in front of her horrified parents at the scene.

Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk