Robert Herrick, the Indiana Jones stunt performer who stopped a runaway 400-pound boulder from reaching the audience at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, is back on stage. Nearly five months after the December 30 incident left him with two fractured vertebrae, Herrick returned to the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular this week to a hero’s welcome from his fellow cast members.
What Happened on December 30
During a routine performance, the boulder prop veered off its track during the temple sequence and began bouncing toward guests seated in the front rows, reaching heights of eight feet in the air. Herrick, who has performed in the show for 36 years, reacted before most people in the audience processed what was happening.
Standing 6-foot-6 and weighing 235 pounds, he positioned himself between the 400-pound rubber prop and the crowd. The impact sent him flying into the downstage wall, fracturing two vertebrae in his neck. Video of the moment spread quickly online, and guests captured on camera summed it up simply: “He literally saved our lives.”
In a January interview with Fox 35, Herrick reflected on the split-second decision. “Thirty years of experience, knowing that stage, knowing that so well put me in that position to react as quick as I did,” he said. His only thought, he added, was that the boulder could not reach the audience. “If I could be a speed bump for that boulder so that it didn’t make it to the audience, I was going to do that.” Even after absorbing the impact, his concern turned immediately to the children in the crowd. “My thought was, I don’t want the kids to see me bleeding,” he recalled.
The Indiana Jones Stunt Performer Returns to a Standing Ovation
Herrick returned to the show this week and performed again on Friday, a recovery timeline that has impressed fans and fellow cast members alike. Fellow performers greeted him with signs reading “Welcome back Robert! The boulder didn’t stop you” and calling him “an inspiration to us all.” Herrick has described the show as his second home and said he missed his fellow performers and the live audiences throughout his recovery.
The boulder prop itself has not returned to the show. Disney modified the temple sequence following the December incident, with the Indiana Jones character performing a flip rather than the boulder roll. It remains unclear if or when the prop will come back. Disney said at the time that “safety is at the heart of what we do” and that the sequence would be modified while their safety team completed a review.
The Show Behind the Story
The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular has been a Hollywood Studios staple since 1989, making it the oldest entertainment offering currently running at the park. The 30-minute show recreates stunt sequences from Raiders of the Lost Ark, featuring live fight choreography, pyrotechnics, moving vehicles, and practical effects. It remains one of the few original opening-day productions still operating at Walt Disney World.
For Disney fans, Herrick’s story is a reminder of the real people behind the magic. His instinct to protect the audience, built over three and a half decades on that stage, turned what could have been a tragedy into one of the most talked-about moments in the park’s history. He told Fox 35 he would do it all over again. “Disney has given me the opportunity to make magic for the guests,” he said, “and I can’t wait to get back on that stage.”
