A movie chase scene got too realistic early today when a car jumped a curb during a film shoot and smashed into the entrance of a Times Square restaurant, injuring two people, police and witnesses said.
The action scene gone awry unfolded at the Sbarro at 47th Street and Seventh Avenue shortly before 1 a.m.
Street closing notices posted by the police indicated the shoot was for the Nicolas Cage film, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.”
The scene required a Ferrari to pass several vehicles in pursuit of a Mercedes as it drove down Seventh Avenue, which was closed to traffic for the filming.
Mark Watkins, a tourist from Birmingham, England, watched the live action chase from the top of the new TKTS booth.
“A black Ferrari and a silver Mercedes were chasing each other,” he said.
“The Ferrari took a route down the center of the road, swerving between cars. The Mercedes took the outside lanes.
“The Ferrari took a sharp right to the left and lost it, swerving across the lanes, taking out a lamppost and a news stand.
“One lady was knocked to the ground and a lamppost landed directly on top of a chap.”
Another tourist, Aimee Dodds of New Zealand, said she was “watching the Ferrari weave through some [stunt] taxis.
“As the Ferrari took a right turn past one of the taxis, he took a wide turn and slammed straight into the Sbarro.”
One of the victims was not associated with the movie. It was not clear whether the other was also a bystander. Both were taken to Bellevue Hospital with injuries that did not appear to be life threatening.
A customer who was inside the restaurant said a manager inside “told a couple to get back.”
“Next thing you know it jumps the sidewalk and smashes the door,” she said. “The manager just started freaking out and told everyone to get out.”
The Disney movie is a live action version based on the epic poem that inspired the classic animated sequence in “Fantasia.”
Cage plays a sorcerer searching for an apprentice in New York
The film is scheduled for release next year. Additional reporting
by Larry Celona and Jamie Schram