Entertainment

Classic ’70s Action Series Nearly Lost Its Leading Man Until a Co-Star Saved His Life [Exclusive]

Published

3 hours ago

11 February 2026

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Including David Tennant‘s DI Alec Hardy and future Oscar winner Olivia Colman‘s DI Ellie Miller in Broadchurch; Rust Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) and Marty Hart (Woody Harrelson) in True Detective; detectives Jimmy McNulty (Dominic West) and William “Bunk” Moreland (Wendell Pierce) in The Wire, and the iconic Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) in The X-Files, a great crime series can often live and die by the chemistry of a pair of cops.

This was no better on display than in Rick Rosner‘s CHiPs, with the duo of Erik Estrada and Larry Wilcox delighting audiences for six seasons as California Highway Patrol motorcycle officers Jon Baker and Frank “Ponch” Poncherello. Running for 139 episodes, the series became a flagship success for NBC and earned millions of doting fans. This was thanks largely to the chemistry of Estrada and Wilcox, with their electric partnership not just limited to in front of the camera.

The duo recently appeared at Big Lick Comic-Con in Roanoke, VA, where they spoke on a panel hosted by Collider’s Maggie Lovitt. During the event, Estrada detailed a shocking story in which a stunt on the show nearly cost him his life, only for Wilcox to step in and use his military veteran instincts to save the day. “I had a little accident, plowed into a car, and then ended up with two punctured lungs, broken wrists, as you can see. Fractured ribs and cracked my jaw a little bit,” Estrada said, adding:

“So I hit the ground, and the next thing is Larry jumps on top of me and makes me focus because I’m now bleeding internally and turning blue, and he kept me focused and actually helped start to save my life there because we had to wait for the helicopter to come get me, to take me to UCLA. They wanted to open me up, see if I ruptured my aorta, and I said, ‘No, you’re not doing that.’ […] Larry helped save my life because of his experience in Vietnam. He saw it right away and jumped on it.”

A Rolls-Royce Brought Estrada Back to the Series

After refusing to come back to the show because of his accident, Estrada admitted in the same interview that the promise of a brand-new Rolls-Royce — “convertible Corniche with bamboo interior” — was enough to entice him back. Thanks to a clause in his contract, Wilcox was also able to land himself a black Rolls-Royce Corniche from production, which was the least he deserved after saving his co-star’s life.

For more updates on the best new and classic shows, stay tuned to Collider.