Joi Harris

Joi Harris
Born Sequana Joi Harris
(1976-12-11)December 11, 1976
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died August 14, 2017(2017-08-14) (aged 40)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Cause of death Motorcycle accident
Nationality American
Occupation
  • Motorcycle road racer
  • Motorcycle stuntwoman
Years active
  • 2014–2017 (racer)
  • 2017 (stuntwoman)

Sequana Joi Harris[1] (December 11, 1976 – August 14, 2017)[2][3] was an American motorcycle road racer and stuntwoman.[4] She was the first African American woman licensed as a motorcycle road racer, racing professionally since 2014, while beginning motorcycling in 2009.[5] She was killed while filming a motorcycle stunt, doubling as "Domino" on the set of Deadpool 2,[6] when the bike she was driving crashed near the Shaw Tower.[7]

Racing career

Harris promoted road racing to women and also the African American community.[5] She learned how to ride a motorcycle in 2009.[5] She started racing in 2012.[8] She gained her racing license in 2013.[6] She started racing professionally in 2014, becoming the first African American woman to do so, in motorcycle road racing.[5] She then set up her own racing team, Threader Racing, racing as #24.[9][10] In 2017, she raced in the NJMP and SPR classes on the CCS circuit of ASRA.[11][12] She had a win on the 2017 circuit.[13][14][15][16]

Death

Harris was on her first shoot as a stuntwoman, performing for Deadpool 2, in 2017.[7] On August 14, 2017, during filming, Harris was riding without a helmet in downtown Vancouver when she lost control of her bike, hit a curb, and was catapulted into the Shaw Tower. She had been doubling for actress Zazie Beetz, playing Domino in Deadpool 2,[4][7][6][8][17] and died on the scene.[7][2] This marked the second death of a stunt performer in North America in 2017.[17] Deadpool 2 was dedicated to Harris.[18]

References

  1. ↑ Couch, Aaron (May 17, 2018). "'Deadpool 2' Dedicated to Late Stuntwoman S.J. Harris". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on May 19, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Scott Brown (16 August 2017). "Ryan Reynolds leads moment of silence for 'Deadpool 2' stuntwoman; production resumes". Toronto Sun.
  3. ↑ Scott Brown, Cheryl Chen, Lora Grindlay (15 August 2017). "Ryan Reynolds 'heartbroken' at death of stunt woman while filming Deadpool 2 in Vancouver". Vancouver Sun.
  4. 1 2 Mike Miller (14 August 2017). "Stuntwoman Killed on Deadpool 2 Motorcycle Crash Identified as Joi 'SJ' Harris, First African-American Female Road Racer". People Magazine.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Leading the Pack". Black Girls Ride Magazine. January 2015. pp. 18–21.
  6. 1 2 3 Christie D'Zurilla (15 August 2017). "'Deadpool 2' stuntwoman Joi 'SJ' Harris was pioneering black motorcycle racer". Los Angeles Times.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Yohana Desta (15 August 2017). "Joi "SJ" Harris, Pioneering Motorcycle Racer, Dies After Deadpool 2 Accident". Vanity Fair.
  8. 1 2 "Deadpool 2 stuntwoman SJ Harris mourned". BBC News. 15 August 2017.
  9. ↑ "Threader Racing 24". Threader Racing. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
  10. ↑ Lindsay Kimble (15 August 2017). "All About SJ Harris, Stuntwoman and Motorcycle Racer Killed On Deadpool 2 Set: 'She Was a Real-Life Superhero'". People Magazine.
  11. ↑ "2017 CCS SPR class - Summit Point : Formula 40 Amateur" (PDF). ASRA-CCS. 2017.
  12. ↑ "2017 CCS NJMP class - NJMP : Formula 40 Amateur" (PDF). ASRA-CCS. 2017.
  13. ↑ "Photographic image" (JPG). Scontent.fymy1-1.fna.fbcdn.net. Retrieved 2017-08-18.
  14. ↑ "Photographic image" (JPG). Scontent.fymy1-1.fna.fbcdn.net. Retrieved 2017-08-18.
  15. ↑ "SJ Harris - Threader24 Racing". Facebook.com. Retrieved 18 August 2017.
  16. ↑ Najja Parker (17 August 2017). "Stunt woman killed on 'Deadpool 2' set was first black woman road racer". Atlanta Journal Constitution.
  17. 1 2 Dominic Patten, David Robb. Anita Busch (14 August 2017). "'Deadpool 2' Stunt Crash Victim ID'd As First African-American Female Pro Road Racer; Director & Fox "Deeply Saddened" – Update". Deadline Hollywood.
  18. ↑ Little, Simon (May 18, 2018). "'Deadpool 2' dedicated to stuntwoman who died on set in Vancouver". Global News. Globalnews.ca. Retrieved May 22, 2018.

Further reading

  • "Joi "SJ" Harris". Obituary. New York Daily News. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
  • "Joi "SJ" Harris". Obituary. Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
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