German Studio Offers to Ease Valkyrie Extras' Pain

Thu., Aug. 28, 2008 4:51 PM PDT by Natalie Finn

Frank Connor/United Artists, Inc

The German studio that has helped Tom Cruise jump over the various hurdles involved in filming in Deutschland wants to help the actor avoid yet another big headache.

The head of Studio Babelsberg AG, which is coproducing Valkyrie with Cruise's United Artists, said Thursday that it has proposed a settlement to 12 extras who want $11 million to cover injuries they say they suffered when a side panel of an old military truck they were riding in fell off.

The 12 angry men, who reportedly were left with injuries ranging from cuts and bruises to pulled ligaments and broken bones, have sent a letter to United Artists demanding compensation and threatening legal action.

Meanwhile, it was sister company Achte Babelsberg Film GmbH, that hired the extras, according to Studio Babelsberg president and CEO Charles Woebcken.

He said that a full investigation of the incident revealed that an operator mishandled one of the truck's door-locking mechanisms but otherwise the vehicle was in full working condition. After they concluded their inquiry, the studio's legal department immediately tried to settle up with the dozen would-be plaintiffs.

"Please tell us what injuries your client suffered, with necessary evidence from a doctor. We would then make proposals for compensation," read the studio's letter to their attorney, according to the Associated Press.

"We have offered a settlement," Woebcken told the AP, "but they haven't even reacted."

"In America, these things happen," he said, calling the $11 million appeal to United Artists a publicity stunt. "You have a different system in Germany. If you lose an arm, it's not worth a million dollars. This [is] a broken rib."

A rep for Cruise said yesterday that the studio does not comment on pending or "threatened" legal matters.

We'll find out Dec. 26 whether Valkyrie, based on a true story about a Nazi officer's failed plot to assassinate Hitler, was worth all the trouble it was to make.