Burt Ward had plenty of near-death experiences during his time playing Robin in ''Batman''

It took a great deal of bravery for Ward to play Robin.

Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution

Nobody said that being Robin was an easy task, but no one would ever suspect the amount of physical turmoil that Burt Ward put himself in just in order to star in Batman. Still, he isn't called the Boy Wonder for nothing.

With a childhood as an ice skater, Ward was no stranger to a physically demanding performance, but he revealed in an interview with the Muncie Evening Press that he'd had at least five near-death experiences while performing stunts as Robin for Batman.

"On the first day of shooting when we were racing the Batmobile out of the bat cave, we were zooming around a corner and the door on my side flew open," Ward said. "I didn't have a seat belt on, and those tights slip on leather. I just kept my finger on the gear shift in time to keep from being thrown out."

It wasn't the only dangerous moment Ward had experienced on set, as he recalled another incident where he was almost cat food. "In that show with the Catwoman, I was really strapped over thirteen feet over the tigers — and tigers can jump twenty feet," he said. "They had meat over my head to see that they were jumping too."

"One that really scared me was when they had us tied on gigantic wheels which were supposed to go around faster and faster," he said. "Well, on a movie set, no one can do anyone else's job, and when the time came to turn off the wheels, the guy whose job it was couldn't be found. We kept going faster and faster and I started yelling and I was almost knocked out before they turned the wheels off."

"Every week I worry about the next show, wondering what they will do to me," Ward said.

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10 Comments

Runeshaper 5 months ago
That's intense! Props to Robin for hanging in there!
cperrynaples 5 months ago
I remember the spinning scene with the Riddler! Bonus Question: Can you answer his riddle from this episode: "What does a welder have in common with a woman in love?"
BrittReid cperrynaples 5 months ago
They both carry a torch.
ElizabethBoop 5 months ago
I was in Griffith Park once as a kid when we came across the Batman team shooting a sequence where Bruce Wayne is strapped into a hospital gurney and somehow comes out of the back of an ambulance on those twisting turning roads, unable to free himself or control his motion. Adam West wasn't there because they were shooting from Bruce's POV so there was just a camera on the gurney. There was a guy walking around the scene dressed as Robin, but it wasn't Burt Ward (this guy was at least a foot taller than Burt).
Sway 5 months ago
I wonder if the Riddler, Joker, or Catwoman had anything to do with those incidents.
Rick Sway 5 months ago
Especially Catwoman! She always wanted to kill Robin but keep Batman for herself.
McGillahooala 5 months ago
I didn’t know how dangerous these jobs could be.
Coldnorth McGillahooala 24 days ago
I always wonder how many stunt people get seriously hurt pulling off some stunts.
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