Last September American film pilot Alan Purwin and Carlos Berl of Colombia were killed when a plane being used on the set of Tom Cruise's drug war flick Mena crashed in Colombia. Now Purwin's widow Kathryn Purwin is suing Mena producers on a wrongful death claim.
Entertainment Weekly obtained access to the court documents, in which the prosecution claims the defendants "knew that the Accident Aircraft would be flown over rugged, mountainous terrain and in the Republic of Colombia, and yet failed to ensure that Carlos Berl was competent, qualified, rested and sufficiently informed for the flight." The court documents name Cross Creek Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, Vendian Entertainment, and Quadrant Pictures as defendants.
Purwin and her children Kyle and Michaela are also suing Berl's estate because he was "not a member of the cast or crew," which puts the producers "in violation of production companies’ rules pertaining to closed sets."
The producers of Mena have not yet issued a response to the lawsuit.
In Mena Cruise plays the role of Barry Seal, an American drug smuggler and pilot who was unexpectedly recruited by the CIA to run an undercover mission for the US in the '80s that outlined the take-down of notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar as one of its main goals. The film is directed by Edge of Tomorrow director Doug Liman and is scheduled for release on Jan. 6, 2017.
